Gukesh Dommaraju, a 17-year-old from Chennai, India, has earned the opportunity to compete for the chess world title against the current champion, Ding Liren. He is the youngest person to challenge the world title.
A tense ending for a teenage competitor
The championship title in chess is determined by a series of tournaments. Top players take part in specific events, and the top eight then compete against each other in a round-robin (all-play-all) tournament known as the “Candidates Tournament”. The winner of this tournament earns the right to challenge the current World Champion in a match format championship.
The Candidates Tournament is known to be the most rigorous in chess, where only first place matters. Therefore, experience and strategic skills are extremely important.
Gukesh (in Telugu, individuals are known by their given names), despite being a well-known prodigy, was not a favorite in the tournament.
The top contenders were Fabiano Caruana (the third-highest-rated player in history), Ian Nepomniachtchi (winner of the previous two Candidates), and Hikaru Nakamura (who is also one of the biggest streamers in online chess). Before the last round, the three were tied, one half-point behind Gukesh.
The conclusion was particularly intense as Gukesh was facing Nakamura while Caruana was up against Nepomniachtchi. Any victory would have been decisive. Gukesh, however, managed to draw his game without much difficulty. Meanwhile, the other game was highly competitive.
Caruana was dominating the game, and a win would have put him on par with Gukesh. However, a surprising mistake and an excellent defense by Nepomniachtchi (who also needed to win) resulted in the two players drawing the game after an intense six-hour match. Both players were visibly upset at the end.
“I’m… I’m very sorry,” expressed Nepomniachtchi.
“It’s my fault,” Caruana admitted as he left the table.
Ultimately, Gukesh emerged as the winner as the three other players tied for second place.
A significant moment for chess in India
For Gukesh, this victory marked a significant achievement. He was one of three talented young chess players from India at the Candidates tournament. This group is part of a remarkable generation inspired by former champion Viswanathan Anand, the first Indian world chess champion. Anand, who is now 54 years old, is still ranked 11th and continues to inspire, despite being more than three times Gukesh's age.
Anand, a five-time title holder, tweeted his congratulations to Gukesh.
“Congratulations to @DGukesh for becoming the youngest challenger. The @WacaChess family is so proud of what you have done. I’m personally very proud of how you played and handled tough situations. Enjoy the moment,” the former champion wrote on X.
Gukesh has now become the youngest Candidate in history, three years younger than Garry Kasparov, who later became the world champion in the 80s (and is widely considered the greatest chess player of that era). greatest chess player ever).
| Gukesh Dommaraju | 17 years, 10 months, 24 days | 2024 |
| Garry Kasparov | 20 years, 11 months, 27 days | 1983/84 |
| Magnus Carlsen | 22 years, 2 months, 4 days | 2013 |
| Peter Leko | 22 years, 10 months, 13 days | 2002 |
| Mikhail Tal | 22 years, 11 months, 20 days | 1959 |
| Anatoly Karpov | 23 years, 5 months, 30 days | 1974 |
| Viswanathan Anand | 25 years, 3 months, 11 days | 1994/95 |
| Fabiano Caruana | 25 years, 7 months, 28 days | 2018 |
Gukesh’s path isn't completely unexpected. He became a grandmaster at 12, the third youngest ever. However, success in youth doesn't always mean success as an adult. Several other young talents at the tournament (some even more promising than Gukesh) didn't fulfill their potential.
If Gukesh wins, he will be India's second world chess champion. But first, he must defeat Ding Liren, the current world champion, in the final match later this year.
What about Magnus?
Even if Gukesh becomes world champion, he probably won't be considered the current best player. Magnus Carlsen, the undefeated world champion for 10 years, has chosen not to defend his title or participate in the Candidates. Essentially, Carlsen is dissatisfied with the current system and feels he has nothing more to prove — which is quite true.
Carlsen still holds the number one rating by a large margin and has been number one since July 2011. He still competes in tournaments, just not in the world title events, and continues to demonstrate his dominance in multiple time formats. Despite not holding the current world champion title, Carlsen is still widely regarded as the best active player and one of the greatest chess players ever. In fact, if anyone can challenge Kasparov's GOAT status, it's probably Carlsen.
For the 17-year-old Gukesh, this isn't very relevant. He still has a long journey ahead to become world champion, but the title is now within his grasp. He could become the youngest chess champion in history.
