Sole leader Gukesh stands strong chance of winning Tata Steel chess

D Gukesh defeated his 45th Olympiad Gold medalist teammate – Pentala Harikrishna to join the lead and make it three-way. Source: Tata Steel Chess Tournament.

A lot of sportspersons believe that playing like a champion is tougher than becoming one. D Gukesh has started his journey as the reigning world champion on a sound note. After nine rounds of the Tata Steel chess tournament in Wijk Aan Zee in the Netherlands, the Indian is the sole leader with 6.5 points. Four more rounds remain in the event also known as the ‘Wimbledon of chess’.

In his first competition after winning the world crown in Singapore last month, Gukesh started with a fortuitous win over Anish Giri, before playing out three straight draws. He then defeated Vincent Keymer, who was a part of his team of seconds for the World Championship. He had a narrow escape against Nodirbek Abdusattorov in the sixth round, before getting the better of Pentala Harikrishna, another of his seconds. After a draw with R Praggnanandhaa in the eighth round, he beat Leon Luke Mendonca. The 14-player field includes five from the top 10 in the world.

Gukesh is followed by Abdusattorov of Uzbekistan and Vladimir Fedoseev of Slovenia, who have six points each. Joint-leader after the eighth round, R Praggnanandhaa remains on 5.5 following his defeat against Giri of the host nation. Harikrishna has four points, while Arjun Erigaisi and Mendonca are at the bottom with 2.5 apiece.

“I have to admit the success has not been easy to deal with,” Gukesh was quoted as saying by Dutch broadcaster NOS. “I might have drifted a bit here and there. But the most important thing is that there are people around me who are always there to remind me whenever I go off the track… The world champion title is nice to have but there is still a long way to go to be the best.”

The encouraging point on Gukesh’s part is he has already played against the tough opponents. Other than beating Giri and holding Abdusattorov, he drew with World No. 2 Fabiano Caruana of the USA. In two of the remaining four games, he will face players rated below 2700, which means he will be the favourite to win those. He will also face defending champion and World No. 9 Wei Yi of China. In the last round, he will meet Arjun, who is rated higher than him but in poor form.

Anything can happen in the last four rounds and Abdusattorov is going strong. But considering the strength and form of his opponents, Gukesh stands a strong chance of winning this. It will be remarkable if he does it because soon after the World Championship, winning another high-profile event is not something that teenagers achieve that often.

Gukesh reached Wijk Aan Zee hours before his first game. Attending award ceremonies and felicitation functions, he didn’t have time for ideal preparation. Despite that, the 18-year-old has shown steel. If Giri asked tough questions in the first round, Abdusattorov looked like winning with white pieces. On both occasions, Gukesh held on under pressure. To get something out of a game on a bad day is a sign of champions and in his first outing as one, Gukesh has shown these traits.

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