The 17-year-old prodigy D Gukesh is now a World Championship Challenger. The calm and composed teenager is not worried about becoming the youngest ever to win FIDE Candidates tournament. He became the second Indian after Vishy Anand to win a Candidates. From winning individual Gold at the 44th Chess Olympiad 2022, the boy went to play the game which Magnus Carlsen enjoyed the most en route to his victory at FIDE World Cup 2023. The teenager seized his final opportunity to qualify for the Candidates 2024 by winning Chennai Grand Masters 2023 in December, organized by us, ChessBase India. We all witnessed this soft-spoken powerhouse’s journey to the top. As he said, he is only halfway through. We hope to see him conquer the very mountaintop this year as the World Champion. Our very own CEO and Cofounder IM Sagar Shah was present at Candidates 2014, a little over a decade later, he was once again present at Gukesh’s monumental victory. Photos: FIDE/Michal Walusza
Final Ranking after 14 Rounds
| Rk. | SNo | Name | FED | Rtg | Pts. | TB1 | TB2 | TB3 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 | GM | Gukesh, D | IND | 2743 | 9 | 57,00 | 5 | 0 | |
| 2 | 8 | GM | Nakamura, Hikaru | USA | 2789 | 8,5 | 56,00 | 5 | 0 | |
| 3 | 7 | GM | Nepomniachtchi, Ian | FID | 2758 | 8,5 | 56,00 | 3 | 0 | |
| 4 | 1 | GM | Caruana, Fabiano | USA | 2803 | 8,5 | 54,00 | 4 | 0 | |
| 5 | 6 | GM | Praggnanandhaa, R | IND | 2747 | 7 | 42,50 | 3 | 0 | |
| 6 | 5 | GM | Vidit, Santosh Gujrathi | IND | 2727 | 6 | 40,25 | 3 | 0 | |
| 7 | 3 | GM | Firouzja, Alireza | FRA | 2760 | 5 | 32,75 | 2 | 0 | |
| 8 | 2 | GM | Abasov, Nijat | AZE | 2632 | 3,5 | 25,50 | 0 | 0 |