7 Cricketers and their Chess Equivalents

7 Cricketers and their Chess Equivalents: Chess is a mental game whereas cricket is both mental as well as physical. Both sports have their own share of followers who love the sport. We at CricTracker thought to make it interesting with a little comparison between the Master’s, Grand Master’s of Chess and the Big Cricketing names. We have tried to equate them owing to their playing style and achievements.

Take a look at the 7 Cricketers and their Chess Equivalents

1. Alexander Alekhine – Viv Richards:

(Source)

Alexander Alekhine is a revolutionary chess player from Russia who first brought into the fore the attacking mode of chess play. Earlier before his advent players tried to outwit their opponents through their defensive play. No one dared to attack. Alexander Alekhine was the first ever player to introduce aggressive attacking chess pretty similar to Sir Viv Richards, who did that with his bat. Batting was a more conventional approach where the key was to occupy the crease for a long time and score runs at a gentle pace. Viv was the first one to unleash the aggressive brand of cricket and treated bowlers and deliveries with less respect.

2. Tigran Petrosian – Rahul Dravid:

(Source)

Tigran Petrosian was known for his famed defense. He was nicknamed “Iron Tigran” due to his almost impenetrable defensive playing style, which emphasised safety above all else. This sounds similar to the wall, Rahul Dravid. Dravid with his defensive stonewalling tactics was one of the toughest players to get out for any bowler. He could occupy the crease for hours and frustrate the bowlers with his watertight defense.

3. Garry Kasparov – Sachin Tendulkar:

Garry Kasparov is considered by many pundits as the greatest ever to play the game of chess. He was noted for his all round abilities and was flawless in his offence and defense. Garry is also noted for his unrivaled chess brain. He can be easily compared with the master blaster of cricket Sachin Tendulkar who is regarded by many to be the greatest ever to wield a cricket bat in hand. Sachin also has no apparent weakness and is regarded for his incredible skill and great cricketing brain.

4. Magnus Carlsen – Mahendra Singh Dhoni:

(Source)

Magnus Carlsen is the current world number 1 in chess. He is widely admired for his unmatched chess brain and his end game skill. He takes the game to the wire and at the last moment unnerves his opponent with his flair and prevails over them. Mahendra Singh Dhoni too possesses an unbelievable cricketing brain and is regarded as the master of finishes who is not afraid to take the game to the very end and backs himself over the opposition in the closing moments.

5. Levon Aronian – Rohit Sharma:

(Source)

Considered by many to have possessed one of the most amazing chess brains, Levon Aronian was a bit of an under-performer in his early days. He is also known to choke on big occasions. Levon can be compared with Rohit Sharma who despite having serious talent has always been in the shadow of Virat Kohli and has never unlocked his potential to be a consistent performer for team India.

Quick Link – 9 Cricketers and their Super Hero Cousins

6. Mikhail Tal – AB de Villiers:

(Source)

Mikhail Tal is easily the most entertaining chess player of all time. He is known for his unconventional style of play, unseen before defenses and entertaining play. Who is more apt than AB de Villiers to be compared with Tal? AB is nicknamed Mr.360 owing to his all over the ground wagon wheel and his out of the world, outrageous shots.

7. Capablanca – Brendon McCullum:

(Source)

Capablanca is known for his rapid chess playing style. He takes very little time before every move and is quick between moves. He is equatable with Brendon McCullum who is known for his speedy, aggressive, fearless playing style. McCullum takes no time to settle down and is one of the most destructive batters.