– Gukesh is still a mystery to me, says Carlsen in an interview with the app TakeTakeTake, one of the collaboration partners of the Norwegian. The Indian won the candidates’ tournament this spring, and is ready for the WC match against reigning champion Ding Liren. Gukesh has also climbed to fifth place in the world ranking. But in blitz and rapid chess, the 18-year-old is far behind the best. In rapid chess he is down to 49th place in the world ranking, and in blitz chess he is all the way down to 87th place. – It’s strange to see someone who is so incredibly much better at classical chess. When he plays fast and lightning fast, you can see that he doesn’t have the intuition to play good moves quickly, Carlsen elaborates. This is in stark contrast to Carlsen himself, who has long dominated all speed forms of chess. Great rivals such as Fabiano Caruana, Alireza Firouzja and Hikaru Nakamura also master all the disciplines. That fascinates Carlsen. – In long chess it works well for him, but in some matches he makes very strange positional choices, says the Norwegian. MEETING TEST: Carlsen and Gukesh have met before. Here from Norway Chess in 2023. Photo: Carina Johansen / NTB – Think Magnus is surprised The experts think Carlsen struggles to understand Gukesh because the two are so different. – I think Magnus is fascinated by the fact that Gukesh is the complete opposite of what he is, says Torstein Bae, news’s chess expert, and continues: – Carlsen builds his game on strong intuition and feeling. Often the first move he thinks of is straight, and then he doesn’t need much time. You can imagine that you have to build your game that way to be the best, but Gukesh is now disproving that and is ready to take over the throne. TV 2’s chess expert Jon Ludvig Hammer agrees with Bae. – I think Magnus’s analysis of Gukesh is good, and in that sense he is not a mystery, but I think Magnus is surprised that it is possible to be so good – and to be good at completely different things than himself, hence the mystery, as Magnus sees it, says Hammer. FAVORITE: Jon Ludvig Hammer believes Gukesh is the big favorite for the WC match. Photo: Carina Johansen / NTB Despite the mystery surrounding Gukesh’s weaknesses, Carlsen reveals that he has allowed himself to be impressed by the youngster’s competence in long chess. – He calculates incredibly well. When I talk to him after the party, he has considered things that I hadn’t even thought about. I just think “How does he have time for this?”. But I just think he’s calculating all the time, says Carlsen. NEXT: Torstein Bae thinks Gukesh can take over the throne from Carlsen. Photo: Erik Johansen / NTB Meiner Gukesh can win Now Gukesh is approaching his first World Cup match in his career, only 18 years old. At the end of November, he meets Chinese Ding Liren, in an attempt to win back the chess throne to India 11 years after Vishy Anand lost it to Norway and Carlsen. Both Bae and Hammer think Gukesh is the favorite before the showdown. In recent years, Ding has struggled with chess. – Gukesh looks like a huge favorite for the WC match, given his good form and Ding’s painstaking efforts over several months, says Hammer. – But Gukesh feels the pressure from the whole of India on his shoulders, adds Bae. Published 01.11.2024, at 06.09
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