If anybody continues to be doubtful about this, then the time has come for India’s teenage prodigy.
D. Gukesh, a 17-year-old from Chennai, is the second-youngest participant ever to compete within the prestigious Candidates Tournament, and the youngest-ever winner of the occasion (which makes him eligible for World Chess). After drawing with Hikaru Nakamura within the ultimate spherical of the Candidate Chess Tournament, he grew to become the youngest participant in historical past to win the Candidate Chess Tournament. A draw would have despatched it to a tie-break, however luck smiled on Gukesh as a last-minute draw between Ian Nepomniatti and Fabiano Caruana propelled him to the title.

Gukesh, 17, has at all times made historical past in his fledgling profession. At 12 years, 7 months and 17 days outdated, he grew to become the youngest grandmaster in Indian historical past, simply 17 days shy of the world report. Last yr, he appointed five-time world champion Viswanathan Anand because the nation’s top-ranked participant for the primary time in 36 years. Now he has added one other feat to that spectacular listing.
In an period when teenage prodigies emerge from India on an nearly month-to-month foundation, Gyukesh’s upbringing within the sport was slightly totally different than most. He was intentionally refrained from chess engines till his ranking exceeded 2500 throughout his profession. This was a dangerous transfer at a time when engines have been essentially altering the way in which gamers ready for video games.

Candidates Chess Live: Gukesh, a 17-year-old from India, will face Hikaru Nakamura within the ultimate spherical of the celebrated Candidates Chess match. (FIDE/Maria Emelianova, by way of Chess.com)
Vishnu Prasanna, the person behind Gukesh’s radical thought of not utilizing an engine early in his profession, admitted it was a dangerous choice.
“Our purpose was to make calculations very correct and to develop chess instinct and analysis abilities. When you are taking part in a sport, you are not at all times fully certain. If you test it, you’ll get a transparent definition (of fine or dangerous strikes).To do away with that complicated pondering, we adopted that methodology.It was an experiment. I did not know what would occur. I simply thought it might be a helpful experiment and he wasn’t going to stagnate, so we stored going with it,” Vishnu informed The Indian Express earlier than Round 14. Ta.
“Nothing was unsuitable. He was so near turning into the world’s youngest grandmaster. Whether he would have had a greater likelihood (of profitable the report that Gukesh missed by the seventeenth) if he had used the engine. “I do not know. We thought he was taking part in properly. To come this near that report is an effective signal that he was in fine condition.”
Gukesh’s obsession with turning into No.1
Other than that, what’s so nice about Gukesh?
“Even again then he had excessive aspirations. He did not take into consideration anything. He was targeted on only one objective. It’s a form of obsession. Everything I labored with None of his youngsters confirmed the identical obsession with the sport and obsession with being primary that he confirmed,” Vishnu stated.
Gukesh began working with Lord Vishnu in 2017 when he was simply 11 years outdated. But even in these early days, they have been speaking about him turning into world primary and world champion.
“From a really early stage, we have been speaking about being world champion and world primary. He may need been 10 and a half or 11 years outdated. He was actually good!” I used to be desirous about a situation like taking part in in . “I began these conversations as a result of even at that age his ambition was apparent to me,” he stated.
Lord Vishnu stated it was Gukesh’s willingness to do “uncomfortable issues” that helped him attain the place he’s in right this moment.
“He was by no means shy about issues like going to the health club and getting up early. I do not assume he loved these issues. He was very clear about his priorities. That’s why he left apart codecs equivalent to blitz and fast and targeted on classical chess, performed primarily in over-the-board occasions, which he did not take part in a lot for younger gamers. is disagreeable,” Vishnu identified. “If there’s one thing he must do to play higher chess, he’ll do it. That’s his obsession with success in chess.”
