Indian natural born player Gukesh Dommaraju damaged brand-new ground to get to the World Chess Championship and the 18-year-old “Friends” follower is currently warm preferred to win the title and make even more background.
Gukesh will certainly be the youngest gamer to take home the undeniable globe crown if he defeats ruling champ Ding Liren of China in Singapore from November 25.
Most experts and gamers think Gukesh will certainly dominate versus the 32-year-old Ding, that has actually not won a video game in the timeless style because January.
The moderate and bearded Gukesh is having none of it.
“I don’t believe in predictions and who are the favourites,” he informed press reporters in advance of the championship, where there is an overall reward fund of $2.5 million.
“I’m just focusing on the process and I try to just be at my best every day and play a good game.
” I simply wish to delight in the experience.”
Gukesh became India’s youngest grandmaster aged 12 years, seven months and 17 days, and among the youngest in the history of the game.
Even Magnus Carlsen, the most recognisable current player in chess and a five-time world champion, was older.
If he beats Ding in the best of 14 games, Gukesh will trump the legendary Garry Kasparov, who was 22 when he became world champion in 1985.
In public Gukesh often appears shy and reserved.
He was absent from the Bermuda party while starring for India at this year’s Chess Olympiad in Budapest — the do is a decades-old tradition where contestants party at a nightclub in the host city.
But after India finished with two gold medals, Gukesh surprised fans accustomed to his serious persona by posting a video of himself dancing exuberantly to a popular Tamil song clad in traditional clothing.
Though he spends much of his time practising the game, Gukesh recently confessed to a love of the hit television sitcom “Friends”.
When competing he usually wears a tilak — a smattering of white ash on his forehead in deference to his Hindu faith — to go with his suit.
In 2022, Gukesh beat US number one Fabiano Caruana at the Chess Olympiad and later that year triumphed over Carlsen.
He reached the world championship by becoming the youngest winner of the prestigious Candidates Tournament in April.
Indian chess icon and five-time world champion Viswanathan Anand has played a mentor’s role in Gukesh’s journey and hailed the teenager as his successor.
“Gukesh is an extremely rational child,” the 54-year-old Anand told broadcaster NDTV.
” I am extremely, extremely happy that he has actually handled this sensational accomplishment. In a method I seem like I have actually taken care of to hand down the baton.”
– ‘Like a seasoned player’ –
Born to a doctor father and microbiologist mother, Gukesh started playing chess aged seven.
His father Rajnikanth took him to watch Anand play Carlsen in a world championship match in his hometown Chennai in November 2013.
The world championship in Singapore is being compared by some in India to the classic showdown between the American Bobby Fischer and Soviet great Boris Spassky at the height of the Cold War in 1972.
Ties between nuclear-armed neighbours China and India are frequently tense.
Ding has been impressed by his teenage opponent’s maturity.
“He plays like a skilled gamer regardless of his young age,” said Ding, who since becoming world champion last year has suffered depression and took a nine-month break from competitive chess.
Carlsen makes the young Indian ” a substantial preferred, and if he strikes initially he will certainly win the suit with no difficulty”, the Norwegian told FIDE, the International Chess Federation.
“However, the longer it do without a definitive video game, the far better it is for Ding Liren due to the fact that he has the capability, however he does not have the self-confidence.”
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