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It was proclaimed as the battle of the year and even the game of the decade between two arch nemeses. It had the spectators with their mouth agape and their eyes dazed in an awestruck manner. I am not talking about a gladiator match of the ancient Roman days or the football clashes between heavyweight premier league clubs; but I was referring to the fourth round game of the Tata Steel Chess tournament that took place between Armenian player- Levon Aronian and Viswanathan Anand of India. There weren’t any men in protective gear brandishing their swords and shields nor were there men in colored and uniform shorts charging into each other while fighting over a ball, there were only a couple of bespectacled men, observing the chess board while calculating moves in their head with incomprehensible acumen. Chess game is more a battle of wits and brain than brawn.

Anand is not referred to as a chess Grandmaster without any reason. Ever since his first grandmaster in 1987, Viswanathan Anand profile is filled with laurels and awards. He is a World class chess prodigy who has won the World Chess Championship a record five times in 2000, 2007, 2008, 2010 and 2012. He has held that position since the year 2007. Besides these, he has won the FIDE World Rapid Chess Champion in 2003 and has held the FIDE World Chess Championship for three years since 2000. He is the winner of the Chess Oscars six times. Keeping tab of his spectacular performances and plaudits he has acquired over the years for his country, Anand was awarded the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award in 1991–92 and the Padma Vibhushan- which is regarded as India’s second highest civilian award, in 2007.

Anand is all set to proceed to the fifth round of the Tata Steel Chess tournament where he will be clashing (mentally) against the Norway champion and World Number One- Magnus Carlsen. It is no secret that Viswanathan Anand and Carlsen have a personal rivalry going on as they have been alternating for the number one position for over a decade. It all started with Anand dropping down to the third position in 1996 after which Carlsen reigned supreme for a while till the November of 2010, when Anand claimed the title after beating Carlsen at the Bilbao Masters. The following year, Carlsen took over as Number one and it is yet to be decide if the history will repeat itself yet again at the fifth round of the Tata Steel Chess tournament.

Indian cricketer and right handed middle order batsman, Cheteshwar Pujara is the one of the best things that has happened to the Indian cricket team. He is a shining beacon of light in these dark times and a tower of refuge as the team stumbles on to find their storm hold. Only a few years into the cricket world and he has already a number of records to his credit. He holds the record for scoring triple centuries within a month. He scored his first double century against England at Ahmadabad in November 2012. He was also the highest scored with three and a half centuries to his credit during the 2012 NKP Salve Challenger Trophy.

But the biggest highlight of his life this year was his wedding. Cheteshwar Pujara tied the marital knot with his fiancé, Puja Pabar,i on February 13, 2013. It looks like Valentine’s Day came twenty four hours early for these two love birds. The whole wedding that started on 12 February 2013 went on for three whole days keeping in terms with the rituals of the north Indian traditional weddings. On the first day it was a function often referred to as the ‘Sangeet Sandhya’ with Wedding vows and nuptial rituals the next day and it was followed by a grand reception the day after. His wife is Management graduate from Gujarat’s Jamnagar district. The wedding ceremony took place at 8.15 pm in a private place on Kalawad Road. There were many other traditional wedding ceremonies that took place over the span of those three days.

Arvind Pujara, Cheteshwar’s father had informed that the entire Indian cricket team and the officials of the BCCI were invited. A few of the invited had turned up for the reception but most of them decide to give the function a miss as they had to immerse themselves in preparing for the Series against the team from ‘down under’. Pujara himself missed a couple of important matches such as the Irani Trophy match against Mumbai and the Board President XI tie against Australia but givene the circumstances, it is easily forgivable. Cheteshwar Pujara profile has a tally of 761 runs to date and he intends to add to it greatly in the years to come.

The newlyweds will have to cut their honey moon period short as he is slated to join the Indian team to play in the test series, by February 15.