Hikaru Nakamura commented on Gukesh Dommaraju’s performance at the Chess Olympiad 2026. Nakamura calls Gukesh the best player on the India team. Hikaru notes Gukesh’s unusual move in the last round game.

Hikaru Nakamura

Hikaru Nakamura

World's No. 2

“Gleb Dudin is a player who is, perhaps, a little bit unheralded. He’s a strong grandmaster. He actually had a very strong event. And if he had won the game against Gukesh, he would have gotten the gold medal for his individual performance on the reserve board.

And Gukesh was probably the best player for India overall. He had a couple of shaky games like the game against Donchenko, but he really was the rock or the glue who kept the Indian team together.

And in the Gukesh vs. Dudin game Gukesh decided to play with the Bongcloud-King in honor of Grandmaster Hikaru who revolutionized the Bongcloud theory, especially with the speedruns. And Gukesh is trying to emulate him.”

The Chess Olympiad 2026 took place from September 16 to 27 in Samarkand, Uzbekistan. The India team finished the tournament in 2nd place with 18 points. Gukesh Dommaraju lost the game to Gleb Dudin. India and Hungary drew their match in the last round of the event.

Credit: Lennart Ootes