In the world of chess, drama can happen off the board, too. Recently, India’s young chess star D Gukesh came under fire by none other than the legendary Garry Kasparov, who questioned the true value of Gukesh’s World Championship title. Now, Susan Polgar, the American-Hungarian chess legend, has come to Gukesh’s defence, so let’s see what the fuss is all about.
What Did Garry Kasparov Say?
Kasparov’s main point was that Gukesh, who won the World Classical Championship in 2024, can’t really be called the strongest player in the world yet. Kasparov said Magnus Carlsen, the former long-time chess king, still holds that unofficial title in his eyes. He also pointed out that Gukesh lost to fellow Indian prodigy R Praggnanandhaa in a recent tournament, suggesting that Gukesh still has to prove himself against his peers.
Susan Polgar Defends Gukesh D
Now, this is where Susan Polgar, the former Women’s World Chess Champion, stepped in strongly for Gukesh. She didn’t hold back in defending the 18-year-old prodigy. Taking to social media, Polgar made it clear that Gukesh is a fully deserving World Classical Champion. She reminded everyone that Gukesh fought hard through the tough FIDE Candidates tournament, beating big names like Fabiano Caruana, Hikaru Nakamura, Ian Nepomniachtchi, Alireza Firouzja, and Praggnanandhaa himself to earn the title.
“Gukesh is a DESERVING World Classical Champion, period! He went through the FIDE Candidates as an 18-year-old, the youngest in the tournament, and came out ahead of big stars Caruana, Nakamura, Nepo, Firouzja, and Pragg, etc,” she wrote.
“It was not his fault that Magnus Carlsen walked away from his title. If we, as a chess community, delegitimize his title because he did not beat Carlsen, then we need to do the same for World Champions after Bobby Fischer, since he also walked away from his title! We can not have different standards for players we like or dislike,” she added.
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This defense from Susan Polgar came as a powerful response to Kasparov’s criticism, reminding everyone that chess titles are won according to the rules, and Gukesh won fair and square. At just 18, Gukesh has already made history by becoming the youngest World Chess Champion ever. He also holds records for being the youngest to cross high rating milestones and earned his Grandmaster title when he was just 12 years old.
Also read: Garry Kasparov Takes A Dig At Gukesh D, Says “Magnus Is The Strongest…
