Don’t count yourself as favourite: Erigaisi’s advice to Gukesh

Indian Grandmaster Arjun Erigaisi has a word of advice for World Championship contender D Gukesh ahead of his clash against China’s Ding Liren — just focus on your preparation and don’t count yourself as a “huge favourite” going into the title showdown.

Gukesh, partly because of Liren’s listless performances in the lead-up to the World Championship showdown in Singapore from November 25, is being seen as the firm favourite for the crown.

“If I were Gukesh, I would not think that I am a huge favourite. I would just try to focus on my preparation and everything. And, I am sure, Gukesh is also doing the same,” said Erigaisi, who earned the title of GM as a 14-year-old and achieved a peak rating of 2799 in September this year, making him the 15th-highest-rated player in history.

“I think it’s clear that Gukesh is the favourite. Both of them have their strengths and weaknesses. But Gukesh is a massive favourite. It’s more to do with Ding’s form because the Chinese has not been in good shape,” said Erigaisi.

However, Erigaisi feels that if Ding plays to his potential it could turn out to be a cracker of a contest.

“If he (Ding) shows up anywhere close to his best, then it will be a really interesting match. And, as a chess fan, I hope that it happens. Not just me but any chess fan would hope that Ding shows up well and is able to play at his best, so that it will be an interesting match. But, as an Indian, I cannot help but support Gukesh.”

Gukesh recently trained with acclaimed mental conditioning coach Paddy Upton, who has also worked with the Indian men’s cricket and hockey teams, and Erigaisi feels it will help the teenaged Indian in crunch situations during the World Championship.

“Chess is a mental sport. To be in a good frame of mind is very important. We saw what happened to (Russian GM) Ian Nepomniachtchi in the 2021 World Championship match (against Magnus Carlsen). It started out with five draws, but then Nepomniachtchi lost the sixth game and then he just collapsed.”

“He couldn’t fight after he lost one game. So, I think, in that aspect, it surely helps if you have a mental coach who can guide you and put you in a good frame of mind,” opined Erigaisi.