When Anand played Kasparov in 1995: Doors being banged, host city changed late in day, and a shock from Kramnik

An exhibition chess event in St Louis over the last weekend — called Clutch Chess: The Legends, which had former world champions Viswanathan Anand and Garry Kasparov facing off in 12 rapid and blitz games — came as a typhoon of nostalgia for chess fans. Three decades ago, the two were entwined by history that was written on the Observation Deck of the 107th floor of the South Tower of the World Trade Centre when they squared off for the PCA World Chess Championship crown.

The final game of both battles came fittingly on the same date, October 10. In 1995, when Kasparov had met Anand for the PCA World Championship, the sport was in a different place than it is today. As were both the protagonists who found themselves playing chess at a height of 1,310 feet with the city of New York playi