Published on: Aug 29, 2025 03:53 pm IST
D Gukesh revealed a pep talk from Viswanathan Anand, which saw him defeat Ding Liren for the World Championship title.
D Gukesh became the youngest-ever World Champion recently, beating Ding Liren for the title in Singapore last year. It was a chaotic finale as Gukesh qualified for the World Championship match after winning the Candidates Tournament. He bagged three wins against Liren, and the Chinese GM had two victories. Meanwhile, nine games ended in draws in 14 classical rounds.
The Indian GM won the 14th and final match after a massive blunder by Liren, which saw him clinch the title.
It wasn’t an easy showdown for Gukesh, as he recently revealed that he was overconfident, which backfired in the opening game against Liren.
Speaking on the Quest Talk podcast, he said, “My overconfidence in the first World Championship match made me lose. I played a horrible game, and then I kind of woke up from the dream.”
Gukesh had the white pieces in the opening game, but it was Liren who capitalised first. The 18-year-old revealed that it was Viswanathan Anand, who came to his rescue after the opening game.
Gukesh was in an elevator, back at the team hotel, and he was sharing it with Anand. Anand, who had also lost his first game in a 2008 title clash, told Gukesh, “I had 11 games to come back. You have 13.”
Also to clear his mind, Gukesh took a full day off from chess. He spent time at a theme park, walked on the beach, tried ziplining, and also visited an ice cream park.
“That day helped me recharge. I got the mental break I needed”, he added.
Gukesh is the youngest player to have crossed a FIDE rating of 2750, which he did at the age of 17. He is also the third-youngest to have crossed 2700 Elo, which he did at the age of 16. He also bagged the title of GM at the age of 12, and is the third-youngest GM in history.
