Magnus Carlsen's broken confidence summed up in his own words after shock defeat to D Gukesh: ‘I just don't think it's…'
Carlsen's reaction summed up the moment as he lost, slamming the table in rage. After that, he also shook hands with Gukesh, who stood up, and looked dazed. Meanwhile, Carlsen even patted his back, on his way out.
Speaking to TV 2 Sport (shared via Norway Chess on social media), Carlsen spoke on his defeat to Gukesh and felt that he doesn't find classical chess fun anymore. In his words, the Norwegian also looked like he was finally doubting himself for the first time ever.
'I generally feel good in this tournament, I just don't think it's fun to play anymore, and that's the problem. I'm sitting there in the middle of the game, thinking that I have the same position as I had so many times. It's just moving slowly,' he said.
'I don't find it exciting, and I know I can play really well. It is satisfying to play well, but then I collapsed towards the end, and showed great weaknesses; Gukesh fights really well,' he added.
It was also Gukesh's maiden classical win vs Carlsen, as the match finished in 62 moves and over four hours.
Meanwhile, Gukesh was humble as ever after the win. Speaking to Chess24, he said, 'I was just trying to play moves that were tricky for him and luckily he got into time scramble. One thing I learnt from this tournament is that time scrambles can get too much out of control.'
'99 out of 100 times I would lose. Just a lucky day,' he added.
For Gukesh, the win had a special meaning, as he also defeated the World No. 1, who had quit the official FIDE cycle and would not be participating in the World C'ships.
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