The reigning world champion, D Gukesh, hasn’t quite looked like himself in recent months. After scripting history in 2024 by defeating Ding Liren to become the youngest undisputed world champion, expectations shot through the roof. But 2025 and early 2026 have been far from smooth.
His struggles were most visible at the Prague Masters in March this year, where he finished joint-bottom and dropped valuable rating points. It wasn’t just a one-off. Across major events like the FIDE World Cup, Freestyle Chess and the World Rapid and Blitz Championships, consistency has been missing.
Grand Chess Tour To Become A Crucial Turning Point
The dip has caused everything to restart. As a result, D Gukesh’s schedule is now much less busy than it was before the dip; he is focusing on training to prepare for the next several months of his life, including for the Grand Chess Tour and his upcoming World Championship match with Javokhir Sindarov later this year.
During this period, there will also be increasing attention paid to him. This is where Vishwanathan Anand‘s comments become very important.
Speaking to Lichess, Vishwanathan Anand did not hold back about the pressures that come along with being a World Champion.
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“I think what you can learn is to focus on what you can do first of all. Having been through something similar, I would say just ignore it. If you are unable to ignore it, if at some level it bugs you, accept that that’s normal. And nobody promised you perfect happiness. Even as a world champion, nobody owes you perfection or a smooth, wonderful life. It’s going to be rough, everyone will look at you differently, and everyone covets your title secretly,” Anand said.
So, with the Grand Chess Tour coming up, D Gukesh doesn’t just need points; he needs a statement because these big matches never come twice, one bad stretch and narratives spiral quickly.
Vishwanathan Anand also offered a perspective that only former champions truly understand.
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“I think you will not appreciate the world championship till you lose it, and then, when you don’t have it, you’ll suddenly think, did I really complain about these things? Because my god, it would be nice to have it back.”
Vishwanathan Anand Advices to D Gukesh
Talking, particularly about D Gukesh, he advises, “So, for him, I would say it comes with the territory. I mean, ignore them. Let the criticism go. I mean, some of it is legitimate. I mean, if your performance drops, they are there, and, I mean, if fans buy the tickets, they have the right to say whatever they want, whether it’s just or not. You know, lock yourself in a room and then just ignore it, but focus on doing a good job at some tournament. If it’s not this one, then the next one, but I mean work towards something, and nothing answers every doubt expressed about you as a good result. So that’s kind of what I think has got to be the attitude,” he added.
What makes this phase tricky for D Gukesh is the timing. A dip just months before a world championship showdown against Sindarov is far from ideal.
The rivalry itself has been building, with both players seen as the next long-term faces of global chess.
Also Read: Grand Swiss Chess 2027: Everything to Know About the High-Stakes Qualifier
