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I find it very interesting when you open your soul and say what you’re thinking: Peter Leko
I find it very interesting when you open your soul and say what you’re thinking: Peter Leko Premium
Peter Leko walked into the media room of the Chess World Cup at Resort Rio in the North Goan village of Arpora late one evening last month, looked at the second game of the semifinal match between Wei Yi and Andrey Esipenko on a journalist's laptop, and began to talk. He explained how brilliantly the Chinese Grandmaster defended against the Russian in a tough situation.
Leko's analysis was lucid, in depth. It was a bit like listening to Ian Chappell talk on the Channel 9 broadcast about how Shane Warne was plotting yet another dismissal of Ian Bell. The former challenger for the World title is one of the most admired commentators in chess. The Hungarian, who was once the world's youngest Grandmaster, continues to play, too, at 46. Indeed, before picking up the microphone at the World Cup, he was moving the chess pieces until Arjun Erigaisi knocked him out in the fourth round. Excerpts from an exclusive interview Leko gave The Hindu:
You have a big following here in India as a commentator.
I had an interesting experience while on a sightseeing tour around Goa during a rest day at the World Cup. I was at Fort Aguada when two visitors suddenly approached me, and they asked me, ‘Are you Peter Leko?' I was completely shocked, but said, ‘Yes, I am, but how do you know?' They told me they recognised me from my voice. That was a pleasant surprise. This love I felt during the whole tournament was special. I was getting so much love and support from the crowd. I really felt like I was at home.
When did you discover that you could be a commentator?
I had quite a lot of experience talking about the game as a prodigy in Germany. I was visiting a lot of clubs because Germany was supporting me. And I was visiting a lot of clubs for simultaneous displays or chess events like that. While I was playing the simultaneous games [against a large number of players], I was giving lectures, and I found out that people very much enjoyed how I talked about the games.
I always find it very interesting when you can open your soul and tell what you were thinking and why you made certain decisions. And even with the mistakes, with the brilliant moves, this was always very special. Then during the pandemic, I got a chance to commentate on the Magnus Carlsen Chess Tour. It was an amazing experience. I teamed up with Tania Sachdev and she always brings her tremendous passion and energy.
Starting young: Leko realised people enjoyed listening to him very early in life. ‘I had quite a lot of experience talking about the game as a prodigy in Germany,' he says. | Photo Credit: Getty Images
Hungary seems to produce quality chess commentators. There is Judit Polgar...
Yes, she is incredible. I enjoy listening to her and doing commentary alongside her. We both have an amazing love for the game.
You came to Goa not as a commentator, but primarily as a player. You had a good tournament until you ran into Arjun.
I was enjoying the whole World Cup tremendously. I was, first of all, extremely happy to get the chance to play in the World Cup, which I was not expecting. I was thinking I would be helping Vincent Keymer in his preparation for the World Cup. But then suddenly, in the middle of September, I was nominated by the Hungarian federation for the World Cup because Richard Rapport qualified by Elo rating. I just sensed I wanted to be part of it. I also wanted to go to India. I wanted to experience this love of chess in India.
And at the World Cup, you were the first player to take an in-form Arjun into the tie-breaks.
I think our match also cost him a lot of extra energy. He knows that I have very good preparation. It was certainly not an easy match for him.
What makes Arjun special?
As someone who has done so much commentary on his games, I have found that he is the player whose moves are most difficult to anticipate. He always comes up with some surprises.
He doesn't play exactly according to my older classical chess vision. For example, when Magnus Carlsen plays, I feel like 90% of his moves I can automatically feel and anticipate, because he plays very logically. With Arjun, there is always this unpredictability also in his opening preparation. He is always trying to find some hidden ideas that are not popular.
Any player that reminds you of Arjun in style?
Alexander Morozevich, who was also a very original player. He was the World No. 2 at some point. And that was a very tough period of time, because there were players like Garry Kasparov, Vishy Anand and Vladimir Kramnik. It was an incredible generation, as there were also players like Boris Gelfand, Vasyl Ivanchuk, Veselin Topalov, Peter Svidler, Alexei Shirov... I was privileged to be part of that generation. But back then chess was not that intensive, because there was not this computer craziness.
You played the World Championship against Kramnik in 2004 and that match was drawn, but according to the rules of that time, all he needed was a draw to defend his crown.
I am proud that I got there, after winning the Candidates. My match ended 7-7.
If it was now, it would have gone to the tiebreakers.
Yes. I tried to be objective in that match.
The Vishy view: During the course of a long association, Leko has seen Viswanathan Anand from the vantage point of a friend, a rival and a second. | Photo Credit: AFP
After losing the first game, you came back strongly to win the fifth game and even took the lead, until Kramnik won the very last game to draw level and retain his title.
Yes, that was during my best years as a player — between 2002 and 2006. Those four years, I was very strong. At that time, Kasparov, Anand, Kramnik, and myself were the world's top four. And whichever player was in the best shape won the particular tournament of the time.
You also worked as Anand's second.
We were friends and we started working together in 1996. Vishy invited me to Spain in May, 1996. He was living there then, and I was 16 years old. It was an incredible experience. Then we continued working. At the World Championship [knock-out] in 1997 in Groningen we both played, but I lost in the first round. I was very disappointed and we were training partners. I started supporting him during the tournament. And then I was also with him already. He invited me to Lausanne for the final match against Anatoly Karpov.
In 2012, before the Gelfand match [which Anand won], I was not an official member of the team, but I actually helped him for almost a month. I was in a training camp with him. We mostly looked at openings, the main ones Boris played. Yeah, but then Boris also was extremely smart, and he came up with surprises.
Published - December 20, 2025 12:51 am IST
Weekend Sport / chess
Source: TheHindu
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