Anand had hoped to present a victory on the chess board to his wife Aruna on her 25th birthday yesterday.

After two days of play, Anand with 2.0 points is at number four. Russians Gary Kasparov and Vladimir Kramnik occupy the top of the points table with 3.5 each. Karpov is third with 3.0 points.

The match between Anand and Kramnik ended in a draw. In a dramatic game later in the evening, Karpov, in a poor position and in time trouble, defeated Anand after the Indian Grandmaster committed a grave mistake.

Kasparov drew his three matches last evening, with Anand, Kramnik and fellow Russian Anatoly Karpov.

A major attraction last evening was the clash between the eternal rivals Kasparov and Karpov. The 36-year-old Kasparov, playing white, opened with his Queen pawn and the 48-year-old Karpov countered with the NimzoIndian Defence.

Although Kasparov put quite a bit of pressure on his opponent, Karpov was able to resist and the two men agreed on a draw after 49 moves. Late in the evening, the Karpov-Kramnik too ended in draws.

Each player is allowed 25 minutes per match for all his moves in what is regarded as the strongest speed chess tournament ever played.

The tournament, which marks the first time that Kasparov and Karpov have met in competition since 1996 and in which the four Grandmasters play each other four times - twice with white and twice with black - ends on Friday.

A Masters speed chess event is also being held within the framework of the Chess Classics Festival in Frankfurt, featuring seven Grandmasters - among them such stars as Michael Adams (England), Alexander Morozevich (Russia) and Judit Polgar (Hungary) and the computer Fritz 6.

Another attraction, at the end of the festival, will be a four-game challenge between Fritz and Anand. The computer will be seeking revenge for last year's narrowloss to the Indian Grandmaster.