Anand annihilates Leko, back in joint lead

Monaco, Mar 25 (UNI) A resilient Viswanathan Anand crushed Hungarian Grandmaster Peter Leko in both the blindfold and rapid games to return to the top of the leaderboard after six rounds in the 15th Amber Blindfold and Rapid Chess Tournament here.

With this unambiguous 2-0 victory over Leko, Anand joined Alexander Morozevich in the combine lead with 7.5 points -- one point clear of the Veselin Topalov-Francisco Vallejo duo.

The Indian also improved his blindfold position to joint fourth with three points.

And it's a familiar story in rapid where the Indian tops the table with 4.5 points, full one point ahead of Francisco Valejo.

The sixth round battle between Anand and Leko was the top draw of the day and the Indian showed who was the boss.

In the blindfold game, Leko looked extravagant as he opted for some experimentations with the Open Ruy and the opening suited Anand who gradually got a grip on the black positions. He had a clear advantage after the exchange of the black-squared bishops and from there onwards, he never had to work hard for a win. Leko admittedly tried to gain some experience in the Open Spaniard but the occasion was not opportune and he learnt his lesson well.

Anand was in his elements in the rapid game. There was enough evidence that the Indian had done his homework well. Leko was repeating his game against Levon Aronian from Linares but Anand had a look at that game and he managed a good game from the opening.

Leko still had chances to keep his nose above the water but he overlooked that and allowed Anand move his black pieces menacingly and Leko duly succumbed to another defeat.

Anand plays Vassily Ivanchuk in the seventh round.

Standing after Round V: Combine: 1. Viswanathan Anand, Alexander Morozevich (7.5); 3. Veselin Topalov, Francisco Vallejo (6.5); 5. Levon Aronian, Boris Gelfand, Peter Leko (6); 8. Alexander Grischuk, Peter Heine Nielsen (5.5); 10. Vassily Ivanchuk, Peter Svidler, Loek Van Wely(5).

Blindfold: 1. Alexander Morozevich (4.5); 2. Peter Leko, Veselin Topalov (3.5); 4. Viswanathan Anand, Levon Aronian, Boris Gelfand, Alexander Grischuk, Francisco Vallejo (3); 9. Vassily Ivanchuk, Peter Heine Nielsen, Peter Svidler (2.5); 12. Loek Van Wely (2).

Rapid: 1. Viswanathan Anand (4.5); 2. Francisco Valejo (3.5) 3. Levon Aronian, Boris Gelfand, Alexander Morozevich, Peter Heine Nielsen, Veselin Topalov, Loek Van Wely (3); 9. Alexander Grischuk, Vassily Ivanchuk, Peter Leko, Peter Svidler (2.5).

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