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Gukesh threw the gauntlet out to the former five-time World Champion Carlsen, stating his intentions to face off against the Norwegian to put his abilities to the ultimate test.
Gukesh (L) stated that he would love to face off against Carlsen (R) (X)
One may assume that reaching the peak of the Chess world in historic fashion may satisfy one’s appetite. That’s not the case with newly-crowned World Champion D Gukesh, who already has his eyes set on his next goal: face off against Magnus Carlsen.
The 18-year-old Indian GM ousted Chinese GM Ding Liren in Game 14 of the World Chess Championships to become the youngest world champion in the history of the sport on Thursday.
With his monumental win, Gukesh became the 18th GM and just the second Indian GM, after the legendary Viswanthan Anand, to win the world championship title.
But his goals do not end there, for the youngster realises that he has merely begun his hunt for success.
“My goal with my career has always been to be at the very top as long as possible. My career has just started and I now want to stay at the top as long as I can,” stated Gukesh at the post-game presser.
Gukesh also understands that the title doesn’t always indiate the truth. For in order to be the best, you have to beat the best. And when it comes to chess, there is none better than the legendary Magnus Carlsen.
“Being World Champion doesn’t mean I am the best player. There is Magnus. But, it’s motivating to know that there is always someone at a very high level, someone that will push me to keep reaching to attain the level of greatness that Magnus has achieved,” exclaimed the young world champion Gukesh.
Gukesh then threw the gauntlet out to the former five-time World Champion, stating his intentions to face off against the Norwegian to put his abilities to the ultimate test.
“Playing against Magnus in a World Championship would be the toughest challenge in Chess. It is up to him, but I would love to test myself against him.”
Well, this may be a bit of a distant dream to hold on to, since Carlsen has not been involved with the World Championships, ever since he relinquished his title in 2022, refusing the defend it against Ian Nepomniachtchi, the then-Candidates winner who would eventually lose out on the opportunity of a lifetime to none other than now-former champion Ding Liren.
Carlsen has infact has his eye out on the Indian though, recently coming out to criticise Gukesh for his lackluster game against Liren in Game 12, stating that the Indian did not even challenge Ding back then.
“This does not look like a game between two World Championship contenders. It just looks like maybe the second round or third round of an open tournament. It’s like it’s the stage where you play somebody who is like decent with openings but then you just win with class,” Carlsen said during a podcast by the Take Take Take app.
“Ding has not had to calculate a single line in this whole game. He’s been able to play the whole game just based on positional understanding which he’s very good at,” he added.
Gukesh though remained rooted when it came to handling criticism, something that the world champion expounded on after his title win today.
“If I am here, I should be able to handle anything. I was not looking for any handouts or leeway due to my age,” Gukesh said.
“I was ready to face the toughest challenge on and off the board. It’s kind of nice to know the criticisms, it fires me up. It would be nice to have more criticism, so I can get fired up even more.”