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KARACHI: Pakistan is just a short stopover for the 46-year-old British chess grandmaster Dr Nigel David Short (MBE) returning triumphant from the Tradewise Gibraltar Masters Chess-2012 tournament in Gibraltar.
"I had a couple of celebratory drinks before reaching here," said the legendary player of the mind sport with a chuckle while speaking to Dawn .
Having coached the Iranian chess team from 2006 to 2007, and visited India, he is no stranger to this region and its customs but said this is his first visit to Pakistan. "I love to travel and the game has taken me to many countries," he said. "Pakistan is the 98th country that I have visited so far."
Having said that, the grandmaster known for having challenged Gary Kasparov, revealed that he had wanted to visit Pakistan for some time now. "Chess has a 1,500-year history in the subcontinent. India today is a big chess powerhouse with strong players and Viswanathan Anand as the world champion, but I was wondering about what was going on with chess in Pakistan."
"Anyway, I got my answer about why Pakistan is still lagging behind in making a name for itself in chess at the international level when I emailed the Chess Federation of Pakistan president some time back and suggested I visit here. Not getting a response, I emailed the federation's secretary general too - three times in fact - but got nothing until I called them up and found a total lack of interest in the game," he said.
He continued, "It was pleasant then to receive this invitation from the Pakistan Chess Players Association to visit here for the 2nd PCPA Open Chess Championship Zahiruddin Farooqui Trophy."
About what Pakistan can do for the promotion of the game here, Short, a chess prodigy who reached the grandmaster level at age 19, said, "As an outsider, I got the impression that you have a non-functional chess federation. Not having paid its international dues, your federation has also caused the suspension of your players' world rankings. That kind of attitude from your national chess body handicaps the players, who are then not even invited to feature in international tournaments," he explained.
"Still, being an optimist, I see potential here. But there are certain things that need to be in place for things to pick up. Your internationally recognised official body's work comes first followed by more tournaments at the national level in order to encourage the young generation in the game," said Short.
Asked what he thought of our international masters like Shahzad Mirza and Mahmood Lodhi, Short was of the opinion that chess is a young person's game. "Players like Shahzad and Lodhi have given the game recognition here. Now you should look towards the younger generation to take this game to higher levels. All you need is a bit of money and a few willing people to see the talent flourish here," he said.
Asked if there was money in chess as compared to cricket or tennis, Short laughed, "Well, I just won 25,000 pounds at the Gibraltar Masters. Chess won't make you rich, but it's not so bad either. Plus world championships are worth over a million dollars."
Asked about his most interesting opponent, Short promptly named Gary Kasparov. "That man has tortured me more than anyone. Thank God he has retired now," he remarked with a smile. "But he is tops!"
Recalling the time when he challenged Kasparov, he said, "You can't go up and challenge a chess champion just like that. There is a meritocracy that has you going through a process in Britain. I kept playing and winning at the zonal level to come up and finally be able to face the champion."
About his most difficult match, he said that it had to be the one against Anatoli Karpov in 1992 in Spain. "He was the champion for 10 long years from 1975 to 1985 and I defeated him," he said, beaming at the memory of that victory.
Changing the subject from chess to cricket, he said that he had hoped that the third Test match between Pakistan and England wouldn't have caused him as much pain as the previous two matches.
The legendary chess player is a huge cricket fan, and doesn't see a reason behind the fuss over Pakistani bowler Saeed Ajmal's action in the British media.
"They said the same thing about Sri Lanka's Muralitharan. But he was a delight to watch too," remarked the good sport.
On Monday, Dr Nigel left for Islamabad, where he will meet the federal sports minister. Before heading back home, he will also visit Lahore for a couple of days.
