Chess: Indian prodigy is youngest world champion of all time

An incredulous smile crossed Dommaraju Gukesh’s face, then the youngest world chess champion in history was overcome with tears. At the age of 18, the Indian conquered the crown of his sport in the last game of the World Cup duel with Ding Liren in Singapore because the Chinese defending champion made a huge mistake shortly before the end.

Gukesh is the second Indian world champion after Viswanathan Anand, who held the title from 2007 to 2013. “I have dreamed of a moment like this ever since I started playing chess,” said Gukesh as he regained control of his emotions. India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modri ​​promptly congratulated: “This is the result of his unparalleled talent, hard work and unwavering determination.”

Despite his young age, the super talent went into the World Cup duel as the favorite. Before the match in Singapore, Ding had repeatedly shown weaknesses, had slipped far in the world rankings and had revealed psychological problems. But the title fight became an emotional roller coaster for both players and their fans over 14 games.

Ding and Gukesh achieved two wins each before the astonishing final act, and both drew nine times. When everything looked like another draw and a decision in the tiebreak with rapid or blitz chess, Ding lost concentration for a brief moment. “It was only when I saw how happy he was at the board that I realized I had messed up,” said the 32-year-old after the fateful 55th move. Liren wanted to force a draw, but in doing so he placed his rook on a square, allowing Gukesh to take rooks and bishops off the board – so there was no escape for Liren. “When I realized that, it was perhaps the best moment of my life,” Gukesh revealed.

A few minutes later, the Chinese gave up in a hopeless position, shook Gukesh’s hand and thus sealed the Indian’s 7.5:6.5 victory. The 18-year-old will receive the majority of the prize money of 2.5 million dollars (around 2.37 million euros). “Every chess player wants to experience something like this, not many have the chance. And now to be one of them – I’m living my dream,” said Gukesh.

Success crowned his lightning career. Gukesh started playing chess when he was almost seven years old, and by the age of twelve he had become the second youngest grandmaster in chess history. His parents took him out of school early on to give him more time for chess.

The former champion Anand is his idol and was also his teacher. “Vishy” once became something of a folk hero by winning the 2007 World Cup title and started an enthusiasm for chess in his homeland that continues to this day. More and more younger players from India are reaching the top of the world at ever shorter intervals. There are currently three Indian players in the top ten of the world association Fide.

Millions of fans watched the games in Singapore in the world’s most populous country, and the Indian media widely reported on the duel with Ding Liren. “What an incredible achievement,” the newspaper “The Times of India” cheered after Gukesh’s triumph. It was a “proud moment for chess, a proud moment for India,” Anand wrote on Platform X.

Before the title duel in Singapore, Gukesh had qualified with his victory at the Candidates Tournament in April, when he prevailed against well-known opponents such as runner-up world champion Jan Nepomnjaschtschi. The Russian lost to Ding in a close duel last year.

Even back then, critics pointed out that probably the biggest chess star wasn’t even playing for the world championship. Multiple champion Magnus Carlsen (34) resigned from the title in 2023 after ten years because the Norwegian was no longer interested in the lengthy and exhausting title fight. The question now is whether Gukesh can usher in a similar era to that of Carlsen.