D Gukesh created history recently, becoming the youngest-ever world chess champion at the age of 18. The Indian grandmaster came out on top against defending champion Ding Liren in the decisive fourteenth game of the World Chess Championship in Singapore. The result also saw Gukesh become the second grandmaster from India ever claim the title, after Viswanathan Anand did so from 2000-02, and then again from 2007-13.
The decider began on equal footing and it looked like it was going to a tiebreaker, as strategised by Liren. But a massive blunder by the Chinese grandmaster in the 55th move saw him resign and concede in a 6.5-7.5 defeat.
Also Read: ‘When Magnus won…’: D Gukesh recalls how Viswanathan Anand's 2013 World C'ship loss vs Carlsen motivated him as a child
Gukesh’s win sent social media into a state of frenzy, but also received a negative reaction from some, including Magnus Carlsen. The five-time world champion hit out at Gukesh once again, but this time indirectly, calling the classical chess format ‘worst’ way to declare the best player.
Speaking on the Take Take podcast, he said, “It’s hard to say exactly what measures the best player overall. I would say that right now, if you want the kind of chess in which you need the most well-rounded game, classical chess is probably the worst way because it’s sort of too forgiving. It’s too easy to mask the deficiencies in your game. And I think if you’re able to handle both faster chess and freestyle, you have covered a lot of bases. You do have your basic pattern, and quick tactics.”
{{/usCountry}}Speaking on the Take Take podcast, he said, “It’s hard to say exactly what measures the best player overall. I would say that right now, if you want the kind of chess in which you need the most well-rounded game, classical chess is probably the worst way because it’s sort of too forgiving. It’s too easy to mask the deficiencies in your game. And I think if you’re able to handle both faster chess and freestyle, you have covered a lot of bases. You do have your basic pattern, and quick tactics.”
{{/usCountry}}“Faster chess, it is a sport. It’s sort of a pure sport kind of thing. But when you get to longer forms of freestyle, it becomes like more science, art,” he added.
With Carlsen opting out publicly from challenging Gukesh to the world championship title, the pair are set to face each other in next year’s Norway Chess. It will take place in Stavanger from May 26-June 6. Before that, he will also face Carlsen in the Freestyle Chess Grandslam in February. The tournament will be held in Germany, and will also see Gukesh take on Anand.