Seventh-round loss gave me energy, motivation to aim for title: Gukesh

The 17-year-old from Chennai, whose father is an ENT surgeon and mother a microbiologist, drew his 14th and final round game against American Hikaru Nakamura to win the prestigious tournament and become the youngest challenger for the world championship title

For most athletes victory is usually the biggest motivator but not for history-making teen Indian Grandmaster D Gukesh, who said he got the “energy” to become the youngest Candidates chess champion thanks to his seventh-round loss to Iran’s Firouzja Alireza.

The 17-year-old from Chennai, whose father is an ENT surgeon and mother a microbiologist, drew his 14th and final round game against American Hikaru Nakamura to win the prestigious tournament and become the youngest challenger for the world championship title.

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He will take on China’s Ding Liren in that match later this year. “I was feeling really good from the start but after my seventh round loss against Alireza, I was really upset. It was a painful loss. But the next day I had a rest day and was feeling my absolute best,” Gukesh told PTI videos in a zoom interview from Toronto.
“The loss kind of provided me with the energy and motivation. After the loss I really felt that if I continue doing the right thing, and I am in the right mental state then I can really go for the wins,” he added.

Gukesh became only the second Indian after five-time world champion Viswanathan Anand to win the Candidates. In the process, he bettered a 40-year-old record by the great Garry Kasparov, who became the youngest to challenge for the world title in 1984 at 22.

Reflecting on how the tournament went for him, the world’s third youngest Grandmaster said, “The focus from the beginning of the tournament was to trust the process, to be in the right mindset and play the right chess. I think throughout the tournament, I managed to do that well and consider myself fortunate enough to have the results go my way.”

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