D Gukesh likened to Jacques Kallis, Virat Kohli by mental conditioning coach Paddy Upton: 'He has that same quality'

D Gukesh’s mental conditioning coach Paddy Upton has likened the Indian chess sensation to cricket legends Jacques Kallis and Virat Kohli ahead of his World Chess Championship against reigning world champion Ding Liren of China. Gukesh, 18, is aiming to become only the second Indian after Viswanathan Anand and the youngest player ever to win the chess world title.

Upton impressed with Gukesh’s maturity

In pursuit of history, Gukesh has tied up with Upton to sharpen his mental fortitude for what is going to be a mentally tiring World Chess Championship. The championship will include 14 classical games, starting from 25 November to 13 December in Singapore. Upton has a glittering career record, having worked with the 2011 ODI World Cup-winning Indian cricket team and the bronze medal-winning Indian men’s hockey team at the Paris Olympics 2024.

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Upton’s initial feedback about the young chess Grandmaster Gukesh, who earlier this year became the youngest to win FIDE Candidates at 17, is highly encouraging. The South African mental coach, in an interview with Sportstar, said that Gukesh has a self-awareness that is “beyond his years”.

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“I’ve been very impressed with his maturity and his thinking, specifically in his self-awareness of what he’s thinking about, and what’s going on for him. He definitely has a self-awareness that is beyond his years. Obviously, he’s a chess genius. But he’s got an amazing self-awareness and ability to self-regulate,” the 56-year-old South African said.

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Upton compares Gukesh to Kohli

Upton added that Gukesh’s personality is quite similar to that of South African cricket legend Kallis knew how to remain unaffected by what was going around him, but the Chennai lad also can step up under pressure as he did at Candidates and Olympiad, something Indian batting star Kohli has done over the years.

“A lot of chess players, I imagine, are naturally quite introverted and his personality is almost like Jacques Kallis’. Kallis could stay in his own bubble, unaffected by what was happening around him, and Gukesh has that same quality. But what’s special about Gukesh is that big moments really seem to bring out his best. In sports, we often talk about ‘big-match temperament,’ where high-stakes situations bring out peak performance,” Upton told Sportstar.

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“You have guys like Virat Kohli who have that ability to really deliver in a World Cup final exactly like he did earlier this year. He had a very average tournament but then when the final came, you can look to someone like him and the way he steps up. I think back to the 2011 World Cup, when (M.S.) Dhoni and (Gautam) Gambhir were the two players — someone who steps up when the pressure is highest. For Gukesh, these big moments in chess seem to have a similar effect, pushing him to perform at his peak. His performances in the Olympiad and the Candidates show that, when the stakes are high, he finds his best form.”