Chess veteran Anand bats for poker

Chennai, Dec 7 (PTI) Former world chess champion Viswanathan Anand has been roped in by Poker Sports League (PSL), a premium league in the country, as its brand ambassador.

The league, which commenced operations last year, recently launched its second season on a much bigger platform with multiple new additions.

"Poker, like chess, is a mind sport. Proud to be associated with PSL," Anand wrote on his Twitter handle.

"In the last couple of years, we have been observing a paradigm shift in people's mindset for poker as a sport. The zeal displayed by poker lovers has given rise to a lot of platforms," Anand was quoted as saying in a release.

"My association with PSL is an attempt to establish the fact that Poker, like the game of chess, is indeed a game of skill, which involves a lot of strategy and a defined skill set," he said in the release.

"I have played chess all my life and when I was introduced to poker I could instantly draw the parallels, which made me connect better with the game," Anand added.

"PSL's main objective is to establish poker as a mind sport in India. We are proud that Anand agreed to be our brand ambassador. It's the biggest move ever - towards changing the negative perception of poker in India, PSL co-founder Pranav Bagai said