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Anand lags behind with one more draw

By our correspondent

Despite a flat out bid for victory against Hungary's teenage grandmaster Peter Leko, India's Vishwanathan Anand had to settle for another draw -- his sixth, in six rounds -- at the 26th Sparkassen Chess Meeting '98 in Dortmund.

With three rounds left to play, it would seem the world number two's chances of taking the title are next to none.

In earlier meetings, Anand has defeated Leko twice, with their meeting in Madrid earlier this year ending in a draw. This time round, the Indian ace, playing white, Anand went for the advanced version, a personal favourite, against the Caro Kann Defence Leko had employed against him at Madrid, and was using again here.

Anand went on a flat out offensive, throwing his kingside bishop and knight forward, but Leko nullified the threat by opening a flank on the queen rook file.

A series of exchanges culminated in both players having bishops of the same colour. Though Anand did have an extra pawn, it was undefended and ripe for the plucking. Thus, the Indian grandmaster accepted the offer of draw, which Leko made on move 31.

Interestingly, Leko was once part of Anand's camp, having been part of the Vishy Anand team when the Indian ace took on Anatoly Karpov at Lausanne, for the FIDE world championship this January. And while on trainers, Anand seems somewhat hampered in his preparations, here, by the absence of his own personal trainer, Elizbar Ubilava. Anand never travels for international chess tournaments without his trainer -- and, since his marriage, his wife. But surprisingly, this time round, neither member of his support team is evident at Dortmund.

With this, Anand has just three points in six rounds of the Category 18 tournament. Ahead of him are Ivanchuk and Svidler with 3.5 apiece, Adams and Leko with four, and sole leader Vladimir Kramnik, with 4.5.

Anand will now play Michael Adams, with black, on Friday. Adams for his part moved up in the standings with a fluent win over former Russian junior world champion Belyavsky. Playing black, Adams pushed his opponent into time trouble in an English opening, with the flag on Belyavsky's clock going up even as the grandmaster was playing his 40th move.

Kramnik, meanwhile, shot into solo lead with a neat win over German grandmaster Artur Yussupov. From a Queen's Gambit Declined opening, Kramnik produced a pawn sacrifice on move 29 that opened up Yusupov's position, which he exploited to gain a knight and, eventually, a win in 37 moves. This was Kramnik's third win in the tournament.

Another winner as the tournament moved into the second half was Peter Svidler, who beat Alexi Shirov in 41 moves. Svidler was playing white in a Ruy Lopez.

This is Shirov's second defeat in a row -- not exactly a happy prognoscis for the man slated to play Garri Kasparov, over 18 games, for the PCA world championship.