D Gukesh’s Winless Streak Continues at Weissenhaus Freestyle Chess Grand Slam

D Gukesh, the reigning world champion in chess, faced a setback in the Weissenhaus Freestyle Chess Grand Slam as he finished in eighth place after losing to Alireza Firouzja. Despite managing a draw in their first game, Gukesh couldn’t maintain his momentum and ended up losing in their second encounter.

Many fans have pointed out Gukesh’s weakness in shorter formats and Chess960, but his coach, Grzegorz Gajewski, emphasized that the young player’s main focus is on classical chess. Gajewski highlighted the need for improvement in various aspects due to Gukesh’s age and stressed the importance of prioritizing the classical format.

During the tournament, Hikaru Nakamura commented on Gukesh’s intuition, prompting a discussion on ChessBase India’s live stream. Gajewski addressed the issue, stating that Gukesh’s exceptional calculation skills could sometimes hinder his intuitive decision-making in Chess960.

Despite Gukesh’s underwhelming performance at Weissenhaus, his coach remains optimistic about his potential growth and development. As an automatic qualifier in all Grand Slam events, Gukesh’s focus may lie more on the FIDE World Championship cycle rather than the Freestyle Chess Grand Slam Tour.

Looking ahead, the next Freestyle Grand Slam event will take place in Paris, and Gukesh’s participation remains uncertain. However, with his automatic qualification status, fans can expect to see more of the young Indian GM in future tournaments.