MIND AT REST, EYES ON NEXT MOVE

With three games of the chess World Championship done, some themes are emerging from the tournament. A look...

- SWAROOP SWAMINATHAN

Gukesh beats the nerves

The surest sign that D Gukesh has now eased himself into the tournament came less than 30 minutes after he took the third game. When he was asked a question about Magnus Carlsen's assessment of the first game "It's hard to understate how bad this was from Gukesh, he did not make a single good decision the whole game..."the teen composed himself before replying in a 'very mature' (the words the Norwegian used when he was asked about it on Wednesday) manner. "I always knew once I settled in, I would get back to my rhythm... I think it's a very normal reaction (having some nerves), and I was okay with that. It was a bad game, but I was generally feeling good. For example, even Magnus, in his first World Championship match, he wasn't at his best at the start."

Indian's deep prep with white

On Wednesday, Gukesh caught his opponent off-guard after both players came out of the opening. Being still in prep after 13 moves is a sign of confidence; it's a reflection of how deep his opening prep has been compared to his opponent. It has made Liren spend a lot of time at the table. He recovered in game one but couldn't in game three.

Carlsen should've been here