Azerbaijani grandmaster Rauf Mammadov has responded to the last-minute change of opponent ahead of the upcoming "Battle of Champions" chess tournament in Baku.
Idman.biz, citing Report, reports Mammadov’s comments regarding the replacement of Indian world champion Viswanathan Anand with Uzbek grandmaster Rustam Kasimdzhanov due to health-related issues.
“Honestly, I had already started preparing to face Anand,” Mammadov admitted. “But Rustam is also a great player and a former world champion. He defeated my favorite grandmaster, Michael Adams, to win that title. It should be a very interesting match.”
Mammadov also emphasized Kasimdzhanov’s reputation as one of the top trainers in the world: “We’ve played to a draw in classical chess before, and we’ve also faced each other in blitz and rapid formats — I actually beat him once in Shusha. Comparing Anand and Kasimdzhanov is difficult, but I can say that Rustam’s opening repertoire is very strong. Nowadays, he’s widely regarded as the best chess coach in the world.”
He added, “Both Kasimdzhanov and Anand have worked with Fabiano Caruana, and they’re very strong. But Magnus Carlsen is on another level — he’s simply incredible. You can compete with anyone, but facing Magnus is exceptionally tough.”
The “Battle of Champions” tournament is scheduled to take place from April 27 to 30 at the Azerbaijan National Carpet Museum. In another high-profile match, Azerbaijani champion Gunay Mammadzade will take on Bulgarian world and European champion Antoaneta Stefanova.
Idman.biz
