Gukesh D — The New King

The emergence of an Indian prodigy

Dommaraju Gukesh was born on 29 May 2006 in Chennai, in Tamil Nadu, the southern Indian state that had already given Viswanathan Anand to the chess world. His father, an ENT surgeon, and his mother, a microbiologist, recognised their son’s extraordinary abilities very early. Gukesh started chess at 7, and by 9 he was already recognised as one of India’s most promising hopes.

His school agreed to adapt his timetable so that he could train. His family invested in coaches, travel to international tournaments, and access to the best analysis resources. The paradox of the Gukesh generation is that, despite computer tools being available since birth, he developed a deeply human, intuitive, positional style — far removed from the hyper-calculation some expected from players raised in the engine era.

The road to the world title

A Grandmaster at 12 years and 7 months in 2019, Gukesh became the second-youngest player to reach that title. His progress thereafter was meteoric. In April 2024 he won the Candidates Tournament in Toronto — the event that selects the official challenger for the world title — finishing ahead of Fabiano Caruana, Hikaru Nakamura and other established super-grandmasters. His victory was all the more striking because, at 17, he was the youngest participant in the event.

The title match: Gukesh vs Ding Liren, Singapore 2024

The match was played in Singapore in November–December 2024. Facing Gukesh was Ding Liren, 32, the reigning world champion since 2023. Ding had won the title in 2023 against Nepomniachtchi, but had since been going through a long difficult period (he spoke publicly of depression) and disappointing results.

The 14-game match was of rare dramatic intensity. Both players made mistakes unusual for their level, a sign of extreme nervous pressure. Ding, still struggling with personal difficulties, was not at his best. Gukesh, for his part, showed a maturity and psychological resilience well beyond his years.

• Games 1–6: A balanced match, four draws and a win each. Palpable tension, uneven quality of play.
• Game 11: Gukesh wins a complicated game. He takes the lead on the scoreboard for the first time.
• Games 12–13: Ding levels at once by winning game 12, and game 13 is drawn. Balance restored.
• Game 14 (decisive): In a rook-and-bishop-versus-rook-and-bishop ending that was thought to be drawn, Ding makes a decisive error on move 55 (55.Rf2??). Gukesh, unflappable, converts the advantage. Victory and the world title.

Gukesh’s reaction to the win has stayed in people’s memories: he burst into tears, unable to contain the emotion of a moment he had been preparing for over ten years. An image that went round the world.

Gukesh’s style: universal but grounded

What impresses analysts about Gukesh is his ability to play games of very different natures with the same level of mastery. Positional and technical in endings, explosive and tactical when the opportunity arises, he recalls Kasparov in some respects through his versatility.

His opening preparation is broad but pragmatic. He plays both 1.d4 and 1.e4 well, regularly changes repertoire, and throws his opponents off with his unpredictability. Against the Sicilian Defence he alternates between open systems and calmer lines. This flexibility reflects a deep understanding of the game rather than memorisation.

Ding Liren: the defeated opponent

Ding Liren’s defeat is painful to analyse. A great player among the greats, one of the most accurate technicians of his generation, he faced Gukesh during a personally difficult period. His words after the defeat — calm, dignified, acknowledging his opponent’s quality without bitterness — were widely admired by the chess community.

Ding remains a major figure in world chess. At 32, he still has many years of top-level competition ahead of him. His world title, won against Nepomniachtchi in 2023, remains a historic moment for Chinese chess.

India, the new chess superpower

Gukesh’s victory is also the victory of an entire school. India now produces talent at an impressive rate: Arjun Erigaisi, Pragg (Praggnanandhaa), Nihal Sarin — a whole generation formed in the wake of Viswanathan Anand and spurred on by the example he set for 30 years.

Indian chess benefits from growing institutional support, a rapidly expanding base of players, and a tradition of logical and strategic thinking rooted in the culture. The fact that chess was born in India — in the form of chaturanga, the ancestral game — gives these victories a particular resonance.

What the Gukesh reign promises

Gukesh was 18 at the time of his coronation. If his progress continues at the same pace and he keeps his health and motivation — two big unknowns in the history of prodigies — he could become the dominant player of his generation for a decade, as Kasparov was from the 1980s to the 2000s.

Magnus Carlsen, who announced in 2022 that he would not defend his title in 2023, weary of the format, is watching this new cycle with undisguised interest. The first date is already set: Gukesh puts his title on the line at the end of 2026 in Geneva against Uzbekistan’s Javokhir Sindarov, winner of the 2026 Candidates Tournament.

To understand the tradition Gukesh belongs to, discover the complete history of chess and the profiles of Bobby Fischer and Garry Kasparov, the two champions who have most influenced modern chess.