D Gukesh says Magnus Carlsen's record peak rating can be surpassed, but will be 'very challenging'

Reigning world champion Gukesh Dommaraju said that it is possible to surpass the highest peak ELO rating ever achieved in chess, the record of which currently belongs to world No 1 Magnus Carlsen. Gukesh, however, added that it will be “very challenging” for him or any other player to achieve the feat in the near future.

Carlsen, who has been the world’s top-ranked player continuously since 2011, had achieved a peak rating of 2,882 in May 2014, breaking the record of 2851 that Soviet and Russian legend Garry Kasparov had previously set in 1999.

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The Norwegian chess icon had achieved the feat shortly after defeating Indian legend Viswanathan Anand in the World Chess Championship for the second consecutive time, winning the second of his five world championships.

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“I do think it is possible,” Gukesh said on the sidelines of the Freestyle Chess Grand Slam Tour in Weissenhaus, Germany, where he finished a disappointing eighth after failing to win a single game.

“But I also understand that it is very challenging, especially since the ratings have in general, compared to a few years back, have been quite low at the top. So maybe in a few more years, it is possible but right now it in the near future, that it’s not that likely,” he added.

The 18-year-old is currently third in the world chess rankings with a rating of 2787, besides being the current top-ranked Indian. Arjun Erigaisi (2776) and R Praggnanandhaa (2758) are the other Indians currently in the top-10, ranked fifth and seventh respectively.

Gukesh, however, is yet to achieve the highest peak rating by an Indian player, the record of which still belongs to Anand (2817 achieved in March 2011). Anand is currently joint-eighth in the all-time list of players with highest peak rating.

Erigaisi (2801) had recently become only the second Indian in the 2800-rating club, having achieved the feat as recently as December.