Rough Patch: Half A Dozen Defeats Now For 5-Time Former World Champion Anand

The defeats are piling up, and Viswanathan Anand just can’t find a way out.

The five-time former world champion suffered his sixth consecutive loss in the $150,000 Legends of Chess online tournament when he went down 2-3 to Russian GM Ian Nepomniachtchi.

Anand started the sixth-round match with a 53-move draw as he showed good defensive skills to keep the Russian at bay. However, Nepomniachtchi pulled off a 34-move win in the second game. After the players shared a point in third game, the Indian maestro claimed game 4 in 42 moves.

Nepomniachtchi then won the decisive tie-break in 41 moves to shatter the hopes of the 50-year old Indian.

Reigning world champion Magnus Carlen leads the standings with 17 match points, followed by Nepomniachtchi (16) and Vladimir Karmnik (12).

Anand lies ninth with three points, and is yet to win a match.