Kasparov, Garry vs Anand, Viswanathan, Chess Classics Giants

Round 6 of the 1998 Chess Classics Giants exhibition match was a draw between Kasparov and Anand. The Chess Classics Giants was an exhibition tournament held in 1998 featuring Kasparov, Anand, and Kramnik in a triangular round-robin format.

The Kasparov-Anand pairing was particularly anticipated. They had played a World Championship match in New York 1995 (won by Kasparov 10.5-7.5); Anand was widely seen as the strongest non-PCA challenger of the period. The 1998 exhibition was the first major event between them after their 1995 encounter.

The draw was a balanced positional game in a Spanish Opening structure. Both players had clearly studied each other’s preparation extensively; the middlegame produced no clear winning chances for either side; the endgame was drawn around move 40.

The exhibition format of Chess Classics Giants was a precursor to the elite invitational events that became common in the 2000s. The format — small field, classical time control, double round-robin — was used by several subsequent events including the Linares super-tournaments through 2003-2007. The 1998 edition was won by Kramnik, with Kasparov second and Anand third.