Gukesh Ends Winless Run at Weissenhaus Grand Slam, Finishes Eighth

Wangels, Germany: India's top-ranked chess player, D. Gukesh, endured a challenging campaign at the Weissenhaus Freestyle Chess Grand Slam, finishing in eighth place without securing a single victory. His winless run concluded with a defeat to Alireza Firouzja on Friday, marking a disappointing end to his tournament journey.

Gukesh had previously faced Firouzja in the round-robin stage and was vying for the seventh position in the final standings. After displaying resilience by holding Firouzja to a draw in their previous encounter, he fell short in the rematch. Firouzja clinched his first knockout win, securing seventh place and a $30,000 prize, while Gukesh took home $20,000 for finishing eighth.

Key Results from the Weissenhaus Grand Slam

Vincent Keymer emerged as the champion of the Weissenhaus Freestyle Chess Grand Slam, securing the top prize of $200,000 after defeating Fabiano Caruana in the finals. Caruana, finishing as the runner-up, earned $140,000 for his efforts. World No. 1 Magnus Carlsen claimed third place, taking home $100,000 after falling short against Keymer in the semi-finals. Javokhir Sindarov secured fourth place with a prize of $60,000, while Hikaru Nakamura finished fifth, earning $50,000. Nodirbek Abdusattorov, who placed sixth, won $40,000. Meanwhile, Levon Aronian and Vladimir Fedoseev finished in ninth and tenth place, respectively, receiving $12,500 and $7,500.

Criticism Over Gukesh’s Performance

Gukesh’s underwhelming performance at Weissenhaus has drawn criticism from sections of the chess community. Analysts suggest that his struggles in Chess960 and shorter formats highlight a need for greater adaptability and intuition under time pressure. Despite a stellar performance at Wijk aan Zee in January, where he reached the final before losing to R. Praggnanandhaa in a tie-breaker, his inconsistency in faster formats remains a concern.

Grandmaster Hikaru Nakamura, who previously defeated Gukesh, pointed out a major weakness in the Indian prodigy's game. Speaking to Chess.com, Nakamura remarked:

"I would say probably the biggest weakness Gukesh currently has is that when he gets low on time, his intuition isn’t that great, and he struggles to work through calculations."

Nakamura also questioned Gukesh’s reluctance to analyze games with elite players like Fabiano Caruana, adding:

"I don’t know why Gukesh doesn’t analyze with Fabiano. To me, that’s just insane. Whether I’m analyzing with him or not, I always follow his games and try to learn from them."

Despite this setback, Gukesh remains one of India's most promising young talents. While his prowess in classical formats is well-established, his ability to adapt to rapid formats and Chess960 remains an area for improvement as he prepares for future competitions.tournaments.