Tennis ace Andy Murray made a surprise appearance at the London Chess Classic, where he had the honour of making the ceremonial first move in round five.
The Scot played 1.e4 for Grandmaster (GM) Nodirbek Abdusattorov at Arsenal FC’s Emirates Stadium, setting the stage for Abdusattorov’s victory over Greek GM Nikolas Theodorou. The prestigious event, organised by Chess in Schools and Communities, is the UK’s top chess tournament. Abdusattorov and his fellow competitors are vying for a hefty £19,000 prize pot.
As Murray made his entrance, the tournament’s official YouTube stream announced his arrival, with commentator GM Stephen Gordon announcing the arrival
“Tennis legend, the greatest British tennis player of all time Andy Murray is in the building! I understand he may be a bit of a GM David Howell fan!,” he said.
Murray, who has developed an interest in chess after watching the BBC series Chess Masters, reached out to Howell, England’s current number-one. Despite enjoying the game himself, Murray confessed that his son has him beat on the chessboard.
Speaking to the BBC, Murray revealed: “My five-year-old boy has gotten massively into chess,” Murray said to the BBC. “I’m not a particularly good chess player but I’ve got quite an analytical mind. I enjoy the game and watching him learn.
He added, with a touch of humour: “It’s difficult losing to a five-year-old when in the middle of the game he’s asking you to come and wipe his bum, essentially. It’s humbling for my intelligence.”
Murray isn’t the only tennis ace who’s mad about chess
Current sensation Carlos Alcaraz is absolutely bonkers for the board game and legend Boris Becker is renowned as a massive enthusiast – he even took coaching sessions from CEO International Master Malcolm Pein.
Chatting to Vogue about his passion for chess, Alcaraz explained: “I love chess. Having to concentrate, to play against someone else, strategy – having to think ahead.
“I think all of that is very similar to the tennis court
You have to have intuition about where the other player is going to send the ball, you have to move ahead of time and try to do something that will make him uncomfortable. So I play it [chess] a lot.”
The London Chess Classic is put together by Chess in Schools and Communities, a UK charity established in 2009.
Their mission is to boost educational achievements and social growth in youngsters by getting them hooked on chess.
