‘Anand Discusses Gukesh’s Rough Classic Strategy; Highlights Importance of Open-mindedness in Formats’

Viswanathan Anand has urged chess players to focus on all formats including classical, blitz, and rapid, which have gained popularity over the years. He mentioned D Gukesh as an example, who has been criticized for his weaker performance in blitz and rapid formats. However, Gukesh recently topped the rapid section at the SuperUnited Croatia Rapid and Blitz Tournament, proving his critics wrong.

Anand advised players not to rule out any format, citing that they may not achieve good results in all formats every year, but they should try to be competitive in all. He added that sport is evolving fast with new formats and players should adapt to all situations.

Anand illustrated D Gukesh’s experience, who had a poor performance at the Classical event in Romania, but then excelled in other formats. Anand also stated that in case one format doesn’t work, players should be able to compete in other formats.

Chess also recently debuted at the Esports World Cup in a rapid 10-minute-per-game format with no additional time increment.

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