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First Post
20-06-2025
- Sport
- First Post
Fabiano Caruana latest top-rated chess player to question D Gukesh: 'Not playing close to his best...'
D Gukesh is yet to win a tournament since being crowned the youngest world champion in chess history in December. And even though the teenager has shown flashes of brilliance, the lack of success has led to growing criticism, including from world No 4 Fabiano Caruana. read more D Gukesh has had quite the few detractors ever since he became the youngest world champion in chess history last December following his victory over China's Ding Liren in Singapore. The biggest among them were five-time world champion Magnus Carlsen and Hikaru Nakamura, ranked first and second respectively in the world with the former counted among the greatest of all time. There's another member of chess' elite who has been questioning whether Gukesh, who has been making headlines globally before even turning 20, truly deserves to be mentioned in the same breath as Carlsen or not. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD American Grandmaster Fabiano Caruana, who had finished runner-up at the Norway Chess recently – behind Carlsen but ahead of Gukesh – isn't just playing down Gukesh's as a threat for chess' old order, but is also describing the new generation of Indian players as youngsters who aren't as scary as they are made to be . 'Gukesh has been ambitiously fighting for first place' And speaking on the C Squared Podcast, Caruana added that even though Gukesh is close to playing his best Classical chess, the titles aren't coming as frequently as they were last year. 'I don't think for the last two events (Superbet Chess Classic and Norway Chess) you can say that Gukesh is not playing close to his best classical chess. That would be a big stretch, not even a stretch I think that would just be dishonest,' Caruana, who overtook Gukesh on the FIDE Rating after Norway Chess, said on the podcast. 'But overall if you look at the last year and a half, then Budapest Chess Olympiad and FIDE Candidates and then Wijk aan Zee twice… Gukesh has had good performances. Obviously he's been one of the players who is ambitiously fighting for first place in many events,' he added. Gukesh is yet to win a tournament since he was crowned world champion, having finished runner-up at the Tata Steel Chess behind compatriot R Praggnanandhaa and third at Norway Chess. The Chennai lad has also struggled to make an impact in other Classical events such as the Superbet Classic that took place in Bucharest, Romania before the trip to Norway, and his struggle with the Freestyle format has been well-documented in the ongoing Grand Slam Tour. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Gukesh, however, has had his moments, especially in Norway where he pulled off a stunning victory over Carlsen – beating the world No 1 in the Classical format for the first time in his career.
Time of India
19-06-2025
- Sport
- Time of India
Chess: 'That's what he was trying to go for...' Fabiano Caruana explains why Magnus Carlsen lost his cool after loss to D Gukesh
D Gukesh stunned Magnus Carlsen in Round 6 of the Norway Chess tournament. Magnus Carlsen's table fist smash at Norway Chess after losing to world champion Gukesh has become a global talking point, overshadowing the actual game between the two players. The incident, which occurred a few weeks ago, showed the former world champion's frustration and led to widespread media coverage and social media reactions beyond the chess community. Not just the fist smash, Carlsen admitted in interviews that he stopped his car on the way to his hotel to regain composure after the defeat. During the Norway Chess closing ceremony, both Gukesh and Carlsen acknowledged that their game, rather than the incident, was their most memorable tournament moment. Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE NOW! Fabiano Caruana, who finished second in the Norway Chess tournament behind Carlsen, shared his perspective on the incident during a recent C Squared Podcast. While understanding the general public's reaction, he expressed surprise at the chess community's response to the situation. — BryanAGraham (@BryanAGraham) "Magnus definitely wanted to win (against Gukesh) to prove a point: the point being that not only is he (Gukesh) not nearly as strong as Magnus but also that he's not as strong as other players. I think that would be his point, that's what he was trying to go for. So I think Magnus wanted to dominate. And I don't think he cared as much if he were to dominate Arjun (Erigaisi) for example," Caruana stated on the podcast. Caruana explained Carlsen's particular motivation against Gukesh, noting: "Gukesh is a world champion. So that carries a bit more weight. There was also Wei Yi, who's a great player. But it doesn't feel like Magnus has anything that he has possibly to prove against Wei Yi or against me. Maybe against Hikaru (Nakamura) and me he would feel like this is a really nice game to win." READ | D Gukesh picks his favourite meme on Magnus Carlsen's table smash The Norway Chess tournament holds special significance as it is the only classical format tournament Carlsen participates in throughout the year. Caruana's victory over Gukesh in the final round helped Carlsen secure the tournament win. Regarding the rising Indian chess prodigies , Caruana expressed his expectations to compete on equal terms with players like Gukesh, Arjun, and R Praggnanandhaa, while stating he doesn't find them intimidating at present . Exclusive | Arjuna Awardee Vantika Agrawal: 'People still ask, 'Chess is fine, but what do you really do?'' Caruana also provided his assessment of Gukesh's recent performances: "I don't think for the last two events (Superbet Chess Classic and Norway Chess) you can say that Gukesh is not playing close to his best classical chess. That would be a big stretch, not even a stretch I think that would just be dishonest." He further acknowledged Gukesh's achievements: "But overall if you look at the last year and a half, then Budapest Chess Olympiad and FIDE Candidates and then Wijk aan Zee twice... Gukesh has had good performances. Obviously he's been one of the players who is ambitiously fighting for first place in many events." Game On Season 1 kicks off with Sakshi Malik's inspiring story. Watch Episode 1 here
Indian Express
18-06-2025
- Sport
- Indian Express
Fabiano Caruana explains why Magnus Carlsen wanted to dominate Gukesh at Norway Chess
It's been a few weeks since Magnus Carlsen's famous fist smash on the table at Norway Chess after losing to world champion Gukesh. It was a fist smash heard around the world — the former world champion's uncharacteristic display of frustration at himself made global news and inspired countless spoof reels, and not just from the chess world itself. In interviews after the incident, Carlsen had spoken about how he needed to get out of his car to blow off steam and compose himself while on the way to his hotel after that defeat. Even in the Norway Chess closing ceremony, both Gukesh and Carlsen had said that the game against each other (not the fist smash incident) was the one enduring memory they would have of the tournament. But for the rest of the world, it's likely that the fist smash, rather than the game itself, would linger in collective memory. Fabiano Caruana, whose victory over Gukesh in the final round at Norway Chess helped Carlsen win the event, says he understands the way the rest of the world reacted. But he was a little taken aback at how the world of chess responded to the incident. Caruana also spoke about why world no 1 Carlsen, who abdicated the world champion's throne wilfully two years back, was so desperate to defeat reigning world champion Gukesh over two games at Norway Chess, which were their first two encounters in classical chess since the Indian teenager became world champion last year. 'Magnus definitely wanted to win (against Gukesh) to prove a point: the point being that not only is he (Gukesh) not nearly as strong as Magnus but also that he's not as strong as other players. I think that would be his point, that's what he was trying to go for. So I think Magnus wanted to dominate. And I don't think he cared as much if he were to dominate Arjun (Erigaisi) for example,' Caruana said on the C Squared Podcast recently while talking about the recently-concluded Norway Chess tournament where he ended second behind Carlsen and ahead of Gukesh. It must be noted that the Norway Chess tournament is the only tournament in the year that Carlsen plays classical format in. He added: 'Gukesh is a world champion. So that carries a bit more weight. There was also Wei Yi, who's a great player. But it doesn't feel like Magnus has anything that he has possibly to prove against Wei Yi or against me. Maybe against Hikaru (Nakamura) and me he would feel like this is a really nice game to win.' Caruana said he expected to compete on 'more or less equal terms for a while' with the Indian prodigies like Gukesh, Arjun Erigaisi and Praggnanandhaa. But, he said, he did not 'find them scary yet, whatsoever'. He also elaborated on why he felt the Indian trio were not ready to take over from him, Carlsen and Nakamura anytime soon. Caruana also observed that Gukesh is far from his best presently. 'I don't think for the last two events (Superbet Chess Classic and Norway Chess) you can say that Gukesh is not playing close to his best classical chess. That would be a big stretch, not even a stretch I think that would just be dishonest,' Caruana said before adding: 'But overall if you look at the last year and a half, then BUdapest Chess Olympiad and FIDE Candidates and then Wijk aan Zee twice… Gukesh has had good performances. Obviously he's been one of the players who is ambitiously fighting for first place in many events.'
Hindustan Times
18-06-2025
- Sport
- Hindustan Times
‘I don't find D Gukesh, Arjun Erigaisi scary yet': Caruana supports Carlsen claim with ‘I can outplay them' remark
Norway Chess 2025 saw Magnus Carlsen claim that he didn't think that D Gukesh was ahead of the pack, despite being the reigning world champion. Carlsen also felt that younger generation of GMs, consisting of the likes Gukesh and Arjun Erigaisi still had plenty to learn. Now even Fabiano Caruana, who is the World No. 4 and the third-highest chess player in history, has joined the bandwagon, stating that India's rising chess stars have a lot of work to do, before they start dominating the rankings. Speaking on his C Squared Podcast, Caruana remarked that he didn't find Indian GMs 'scary', but also felt that they were 'very strong'. He said, '(These Indians players are) very strong. I think that we'll be competing on more or less equal terms for a while. But I don't find them scary yet. Whatsoever!' 'When I play for example Arjun or Gukesh, I do get this feeling — not just based on this Norway Chess tournament, but on many tournaments — that I can really outplay them very significantly and get a lot of winning chances. I don't think they can outplay me in the same way. 'Although they will get winning chances and then it's about some other factors. Really this is my honest opinion. It's not me trying to play them down or anything. I'm not doing that. They can definitely outperform me in various ways. But my feeling is that if it's a long match, they're great fighters, but they also give a lot of chances and (for them) it can be very frustrating to play against someone who doesn't give many chances,' he added. According to the latest FIDE classical rankings, Magnus Carlsen still occupies pole position, with a 2837 rating, and is followed by Hikaru Nakamura (2804) in second place. Meanwhile, India's Erigaisi (2782) is third, Caruana (2777) is fourth, with Gukesh (2776) in fifth position.
Indian Express
17-06-2025
- Sport
- Indian Express
Fabiano Caruana: Indian youngsters very strong, but I don't find them scary yet, whatsoever
Over the last few years, there has been plenty of talk in chess about an Indian take over at the top of the rankings. There are currently four Indian players among the top 10 spots in the FIDE ratings and a 19-year-old from Chennai, Gukesh, occupies the world champion's throne. But Fabiano Caruana has said on his podcast after the Norway Chess tournament that there is still time for Indian prodigies like Gukesh, Praggnanandhaa and Arjun Erigaisi taking over the top spots in the sport from the likes of world no 1 Magnus Carlsen, Hikaru Nakamura and Caruana himself. The recently-ended Norway Chess tournament was a clash of generations in that sense with Carlsen, Caruana and Nakamura representing their generation while Gukesh and Erigaisi were flying the flag for Indian prodigies. Gukesh even went into the final day of the event with a chance to win the title, trailing Carlsen by half a point. But in the end, it was Carlsen who won his 7th title at Stavanger while Caruana pipped Gukesh to second spot. Nakamura was fourth ahead of Erigaisi. Caruana believes that the Indian stars are great players, but they're 'not scary' yet. '(These Indians players are) very strong. I think that we'll be competing on more or less equal terms for a while. But I don't find them scary yet. Whatsoever!' Caruana said on his C Squared Podcast. At Norway Chess, Caruana beat Gukesh in the final game to deliver a cruel heartbreak on the Indian teenager who had started the day with hopes of winning the tournament. In the previous game, the duo had drawn their classical duel. Caruana had beaten Arjun once at the tournament and lost the second time with colours reversed to the Indian. Caruana, who finds himself on 4th spot in the FIDE June ratings between Erigaisi and Gukesh, then explained why the world of chess was unlikely to see a changing of guard in the near future. 'If Levon Aronian is 10 years older than me and he's competing on completely equal terms with these young guys… or Hikaru, who's five years older than me, and it feels like he's still a stronger player than these young guys for the most part… then why would there be this theory that they're going to take over anytime soon. Especially if you consider that Magnus is, I would say, clearly stronger than them,' he said. He praised the Indians as fighters, but pointed out that they were giving their opponents plenty of chances too in games. 'When I play for example Arjun or Gukesh, I do get this feeling — not just based on this Norway Chess tournament, but on many tournaments — that I can really outplay them very significantly and get a lot of winning chances. I don't think they can outplay me in the same way. Although they will get winning chances and then it's about some other factors. Really this is my honest opinion. It's not me trying to play them down or anything. I'm not doing that. They can definitely outperform me in various ways. But my feeling is that if it's a long match, they're great fighters, but they also give a lot of chances and (for them) it can be very frustrating to play against someone who doesn't give many chances.'
