D Gukesh: How His Successful World Championship Campaign Was Conceived

In Tamil Nadu, 12/12 of every year is Rajnikanth Day (his birthdate).

From 12/12/24, it will also be remembered as Rajnikanth's son's day.

Dommaraju Gukesh, whose ENT doctor father's name too is Rajnikanth, made the date his own by becoming the youngest ever world chess champion (18 years, 8 months, and 14 days) by dethroned the holder Ding Liren in the 14th and final game of championship with a score of 7.5 to 6.5.

Incidentally, the championship, and the final match, fittingly had all the interesting masala elements of a Superstar film. Gukesh lost the first match of the long series. But true to his gritty resolve, he evened the score in the third game. And what followed was a catena of middling and occasionally attritional draws.

When Gukesh surged ahead capitalising on Ding Liren error in the 11th game, one thought that the series was done and dusted. But the Chinese defending champion showed that despite his mental and physical frailties in recent times he belongs to the top league with a spectacular win in the 12th game the very next day. That kind of comeback from a man believed to be in some kind of mental low was among the highlights of the series that was well fought but without rancour by both the players.

Going into the 14th final game of the traditional match play, the expectation was that this would go into a tiebreak blitz, never a convincing end to a championship of this stature. And as it happened, the game progressed on safe lines till the cataclysmic (for Ding Liren) 55th move when he made a, what every expert concedes, school-boyish error. And that handed on a platter the game, set, and championship to Gukesh, setting off emotional victory celebrations in the entire country. The twist in the climax, as we said, belonged to pulsating commercial cinema.

In 1988, India had just one GM in Anand. But now, India has 84 GMs, including three women. India's rise has been meteoric in the last two decades, and it now sits fifth in the list of GMs behind Russia, the USA, Germany, and Ukraine. This is truly remarkable.

But make no mistake about it, there is nothing filmi or improbable about Gukesh's rise to the top of the chess totem. When he won the Candidate's championship at Toronto in April to take a crack at Ding Liren, we had written, "...knowing his intensity and preparation commitment, Gukesh should again fancy his chance to become the youngest world champion."

No real surprise in Gukesh’s triumph

We need not have been expert chess crystal ball gazers to predict this. For, Gukesh, like in chess, knows how to be in the right position at the right moment. In sheer ranking, he is not even India's best. But his consistent success in marquee events shows that he knows when and how to seize the occasion. 

Just consider these stats: 

In 2019, at the age of 12 years, seven months, and 17 days, Gukesh became the second youngest chess grandmaster in history, missing the record to be the youngest by just 17 days. (The record was however broken by Indian-origin American Abhimanyu Mishra in 2021. Gukesh is now the third youngest to win the GM title). He is the youngest to reach the ELO rating of 2,750.

Gukesh is also the youngest player to beat Magnus Carlsen at the Aim Chess Rapid tournament (2022) after the Norwegian became World Champion.

He is already twice gold medallist (in Individual Board) at the chess Olympiad.   

But in a State swarming with talented Grand Masters — Tamil Nadu alone has 26 GMs out of India's 84 — Gukesh did not take his precocious skills for granted. He, with the help of his dad (who gave up his career to back his son's pursuits) and microbiologist mom, stayed committed and focused all through. 

They along with WACA (Westbridge Anand Chess Academy), which mentors budding talented Indian chess players under the stewardship of Anand, got down to plot a campaign for Gukesh immediately after his sensational success in Toronto where the competition saw the likes of Fabiano Caruana, Russian Ian Nepomniachtchi and another American Hikaru Nakamura, besides bright Indian challenge from Praggnanandhaa and Vidit Gujrathi. 

Poles in pole position in Gukesh’s team

Gukesh's think-tank understood that to displace Ding Liren, even though he was going through a low, needed a campaign that covered all the bases. And the backroom group that they came up with did exactly that. Look at the team that piloted Gukesh's challenge. Principally, it was a 8-member contingent led by the Pole Grzegorz Gajewski, who has been Gukesh's primary trainer for the past two years. 

Then there was another Polish chess talent Radoslaw Wojtaszek, who has been with Gukesh since the FIDE Candidates Chess Tournament.  The Polish quartet was completed by two other GMs Jan-Krzysztof Duda and Jan Klimkowski. Then, there was also German GM prodigy Vincent Keymer who provided tactical nous.

Of course, Gukesh was also well served by Anand's mentoring. The five-time World Champion — he won it first in 2000 — knew only too well the draining cycle and its unique challenges. And he had been preparing Gukesh for the same with his usual efficiency and aplomb. Then there was Pentala Harikrishna, another Indian GM offering his own guidance and support as a Second.

There was also Paddy Upton, the mental conditioning coach, who provided crucial support in the six months leading up to the championship. Paddy, who was part of the Indian cricket team during its epochal win in the 2011 WC and India’s hockey team in its bronze medal-winning campaign in the Paris Olympics, had sessions with Gukesh every week to get him to be cerebrally sharp for the arduous fight. That he said that found Gukesh already ready is a testament to Gukesh's innate inner strength/  

Within this big team, the roles were well defined Gajewski, known for his meticulous training methods, worked on Gukesh's strategies and overall game while Wojtaszek, a former top-10 player provided valuable insights and training in positional play. 

Keymer joined the team specifically for the World Chess Championship match, contributing to the final preparations. A fresh talent in the chess world, Keymer's involvement brought novel perspectives and energy to the team. Duda was a kind of sparring partner and Pentala Harikrishna kept him agile in opening and middle game gambits. They brought depth and strength to the training sessions. Of course, Anand was also always there, extending support and attending training camps, offering invaluable advice and encouragement. Paddy's sessions helped Gukesh stay focused and resilient under pressure.

You need a ticking heart in a brainy game

As you can see, there was nothing left to chance. If anything, Gukesh took his chances and was never content to play safe, especially in those early matches when the matches were threatening to fall into some predictable pattern. Though his eventual victory was sealed yesterday, it was in those early games that Gukesh clearly telegraphed the idea that he was indeed made of champion stuff.

That some of the old warhorses of the sport have not reacted kindly to Gukesh's success can be easily ignored. They are just being salty or plain mean to a youngster's phenomenal achievement. But both Gukesh and Ding themselves compensated for that with their wonderful approach all through the series. In the end, Gukesh was gracious in his hour of pride while Ding was dignity personified in his moment of loss. 

In a game that is all about a ticking brain, the two champions also showed what it really takes to spar at the top — a large heart.