New Delhi: India’s teenage prodigy, D Gukesh, made history on Thursday by becoming the youngest-ever World Chess Champion. The 18-year-old triumphed over defending champion Ding Liren of China in the thrilling 14th and final game of the match. Gukesh clinched the victory with 7.5 points to Liren’s 6.5, securing the decisive win in the last classical time control game of a contest that had appeared to be heading for a draw for much of the time.
Before Gukesh’s achievement on Thursday, the legendary Garry Kasparov of Russia held the record as the youngest-ever World Chess Champion, having won the title at the age of 22 by defeating Anatoly Karpov in 1985. Gukesh, who had earlier this year triumphed in the Candidates tournament, entered the match as the youngest challenger to the world crown.
He is the second Indian to claim the global title, following the footsteps of the legendary Viswanathan Anand. Anand, a five-time World Champion, last won the title in 2013.
With this historic victory, Gukesh also took home a substantial prize of USD 1.3 million (approximately ₹11.03 crore) from the total prize purse of 2.5 million.
In the 2024 World Chess Championship, which featured a total prize pool of $2.5 million, each classical game win was valued at $200,000 (approximately ₹1.69 crore). Gukesh secured three victories, earning $600,000 (around ₹5.07 crore), while Liren, who won two games, earned $400,000 (roughly ₹3.38 crore).
The remaining $1.5 million in prize money will be split equally between the players. As a result, Gukesh’s total earnings will amount to $1.35 million (approximately ₹11.45 crore), while Liren will take home $1.15 million (around ₹9.75 crore).
Although Gukesh walked away with a prize money of ₹11.45 crore from the World Chess Championship, it pales in comparison to some of the top picks of IPL 2025. In the mega auction held in Saudi Arabia last month, 13 cricketers were bought for amounts exceeding Gukesh’s prize money.
IPL auction’s highest-paid cricketer, Rishabh Pant, was bought for ₹27 crore — nearly 2.5 times more than Gukesh’s prize money. Pant’s record-breaking price was the highest ever in IPL auction history, as the Lucknow Super Giants splashed the cash for the India wicketkeeper-batter.
However, Gukesh’s victory transcends monetary value. His achievement is another monumental step in affirming India’s position as the current superpower of chess.
