The 19-year-old hasn’t had a lot of such days on the board through a quiet year after becoming the classical world champion and the toast of India in December 2024. He’s been hopping across tournaments, juggling different formats, and, along the way, learning to deal with the heightened spotlight that comes with the crown.

As Gukesh wades through the challenges of rise in expectations and chatter around him after a dip in form, HT spoke to some of his current rivals and former prodigies, during the ongoing GCL, to get their perspective on the Indian’s post-champion days.

Fabiano Caruana, world No.3

The American GM felt one probably “can’t say that he (Gukesh) is the pure No. 1 in the world now, but that’s normal”. What the title brings with it, however, is that people “look at him differently, as the guy to beat”.

“It can also put pressure on you. I’m sure he’s felt some pressure. Only he can speak to how much he’s felt that,” said Caruana. “But certainly, you feel like you have more to prove. For the outside public, it’s significant. They see the world champion as kind of the guy to beat, right?”

Caruana added: “Should the world champion be the No.1 player in the world? Or dominate tournaments? I guess, in an ideal world, yes. But it doesn’t always work out like that. I don’t know if that’s a bad thing, or if there’s a way to make it like that. Sometimes you have it – guys like Garry (Kasparov) or Magnus (Carlsen) or Bobby (Fischer). But you also have some strange things happen, like Bobby stopped playing chess for no reason, or Garry decided to break away from the cycle, or Magnus decided to stop playing.

“Obviously, Gukesh did everything that he was supposed to do. Now, he had a bad year – or a relatively bad year – after he won the title. So, naturally there’s some talk about it, right? That’s also what you would expect in any sort of competition.”

Anish Giri, world No.8

The world No.8 Dutch GM reckoned after Carlsen withdrew from the World Championship cycle, “there isn’t one player who is much above the others” at the moment.

“In some sports at some period of time, there can be a bunch of players who are approximately the same level. And one of them wins. And, it’s not his fault that he won,” Giri said.

“As someone who’s trying to acquire the title myself, it is ridiculous to complain that the player is not the best player in the world. Because he (Gukesh) never claimed that. But, of course, once you gain that title, you have to carry it around, almost saying, ‘Of course I am the best’.

“Gukesh has gone through the process and done everything right, and suddenly, there’s a discussion on whether he’s the best player in the world. Where did that come from? But, I also understand that. Usually and often, it goes together.”

Hou Yifan, women’s world No.1

Like Gukesh, Hou Yifan wore the world crown in her teens. A women’s world champion at 16, the three-time winner said the tag “can make you stand out a little bit”, although adding that the competitiveness in the open section is much higher than the women’s. Yet, what holds true for both is that being the world champion “doesn’t necessarily equate to being the best in the world”.

“For young players, winning a title can give you confidence, and (make you) a bit more well recognised. But also, and maybe for example in Gukesh’s case, it can give more pressure? Because, people are following you, and they think, ‘because you won the title, you’re supposed to win this and that event’. But we are human players. And sometimes we should have that tolerance to understand that people might make mistakes at different moments,” the Chinese GM said.

“I see some of Gukesh’s events, and maybe I felt like (he is) a little bit more under pressure.”

Wesley So, world No.11

Another young achiever, the seasoned Filipino-American GM said Gukesh has managed to get at first attempt what others “try to achieve throughout their careers”.

“He just needs to maintain the same level of hunger and thirst to improve, like he did before he started. He’s still improving, still figuring things out. He’s still got a lot of weaknesses, but he’s working on it. And he’s still a teen, so he has time,” he said.

Alireza Firouzja, world No.6

The 22-year-old Iranian-French GM, who in the past has earned high praise from Carlsen, foresees interesting battles with the young Indian champion.

“It’s not easy for him, of course. Everybody looks at him as the world champion. And the world champion is considered the best player. It will be interesting coming up against him. He is very young, and still has a lot of room to improve.”