Magnus Carlsen shared his opinion on Gukesh Dommaraju’s weaknesses in an interview with the Financial Times. Carlsen calls Gukesh’s calculations overly optimistic. Magnus notes that Gukesh is currently not able to show his talent fully.

Magnus Carlsen

Magnus Carlsen

World's No. 1

“Gukesh’s evaluations are way too optimistic. That makes him take way more chances than he should. I think especially now his confidence hasn’t been too high. He just tries to do a little bit too much.

He was able to show the full array of his talent in 2024, and it must be really frustrating that he’s not able to do so now. When you’re not able to, you kind of try desperately to do it still, and it doesn’t work.”

Reigning World Champion Gukesh Dommaraju will play against Javokhir Sindarov at the Salesforce FIDE World Championship 2026. The match will take place in Geneva, Switzerland from November 25 to December 15.

Credit: Saint Louis Chess Club