Thanks to board games, we have been able to stay engaged at home throughout the pandemic. From Chess to Ludo, the existence of several online gaming communities has made it easier for us.
And while most of us play to let the clock pass, Chess.com recently hosted a charity event, Checkmate COVID, to raise COVID relief funds for those affected in India.
The celebrity edition of the event featured personalities such as Nikhil Kamath, Viswanathan Anand, Aamir Khan, Sajid Nadiadwala, Yuzvendra Chahal and Riteish Deshmukh.
So nice to see such big stars come together to play chess and raise money for the fight against covid. Great event !!! pic.twitter.com/Yjc5hluusU
– Vidit Gujrathi (@viditchess) June 13, 2021
While all the other celebrities lost the game to Viswanathan Anand, Nikhil Kamath, co-founder and CIO of Zerodha, surprised everyone with his victory against the chess legend. Not only did he beat Anand, but his accuracy was 99% as well.
Chess fans couldn’t believe it. A popular international chess YouTuber, Agadmator, posted a post-match analysis and it was found that Nikhil had violated the “Fair Play” policy.
Following this revelation, Nikhil Kamath’s game account on chess.com has apparently been closed.
So Zerodha CEO Nikhil Kamath played a charity chess match against Visvanathan Anand for COViD relief.
Played the system to win.
His chess profile has been banned.
A little ashamed to cheat to win against a world champion. pic.twitter.com/67GvU2j6tD– MB (@desiboho) June 13, 2021
The news quickly went viral on social media. Nikhil later tweeted that he had enlisted the help of people and computers to analyze the game. He also apologized for his behavior.
It’s ridiculous that so many people think I really beat Vishy sir in a game of chess, it’s almost like waking up and winning a 100 meter race with Usain Bolt. ?? pic.twitter.com/UoazhNiAZV
– Nikhil Kamath (@nikhilkamathcio) June 14, 2021
From other notable chess players to fans, a lot of people react to Nikhil’s unfair play.
After having blundered a pawn on the first move (1.Nf3 e5) I wonder which friend could beat @ vishy64theking. Of course, Anand didn’t know anything except the strength of the engine. Respect for Anand continues to grow. Amazing calm and sportsmanship from the #Legend. Ridiculous indeed 🙂 https://t.co/0DLfJSFUzI
– Surya Sekhar Ganguly (@ suryachess64) June 14, 2021
Chess drama Monday! Guess: Vishy knew Nikhil Kamath was using a motor but didn’t want to distract people from the charity event so he just let it go because he also knew people would find out without him having to do what whatever, what happened.
– Dennis (@DennisLibre) June 14, 2021
(1/4) When I first met Vishy Anand, I had the opportunity to ask him a question about one of his games. I bragged about it all month .. (I still do..😛)
What Nikhil Kamath has done is disrespect a player of Vishy’s stature. pic.twitter.com/1xW0aJpAxu
– Kiran Kumnoor (@ kirankumnoor12) June 14, 2021
Things got out of hand and Viswanathan Anand and his wife also responded to Nikhil’s apology.
Yesterday was celebrity sim for people to fundraise. It was a fun experience that respected the ethics of the game. pic.twitter.com/ISJcguA8jQ
– Viswanathan Anand (@ vishy64theking) June 14, 2021
(1/2)
Aruna Anand, wife and manager of Vishy Anand on Nikhil Kamath incident: “Well Nikhil contacted Anand today and explained this tweet to him. Anand replied that he could not deny the algorithm and that he would not personally comment on the problem …
– ChessBase India (@ChessbaseIndia) June 14, 2021
For those who don’t know, Nikhil Kamath is one of India’s youngest billionaires. But this time his fame is in danger.
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