'He deserved a D...': Viswanathan Anand grades Gukesh's performance at Norway Chess 2025

Indian Grandmaster Dommaraju Gukesh has not had the best few months after becoming the world champion last December. While he has displayed some good performances in classical chess, Gukesh is yet to prove himself in other formats, including Freestyle Chess and Blitz.

Anand's view on Gukesh's performance in Norway

After Gukesh's recent showing at the 2025 Norway Chess tournament, five-time world champion Viswanathan Anand provided his verdict on his game. In an interview with Chess.com, Anand graded Gukesh’s performance in the event.

“I think I will go up to B. He deserved a D, but he got a lot of answers correct somehow (at Norway Chess). So that’s a B. Given that he survived and based on his points, I would give him a B,” Anand was quoted as saying.

Gukesh had been going through a tough patch after winning the world championship last year. He narrowly missed winning the Tata Steel Chess tournament after losing a tie-break to compatriot Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa and then struggled in back-to-back Freestyle Chess events.

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His performance at Weissenhaus Freestyle Chess was very poor as he finished with zero wins, 11 draws, and six losses. The Paris Freestyle and Superbet Chess Classic Romania tournaments also didn’t go well for the 19-year-old.

However, Gukesh's performance at the Norway Chess event saw a big turnaround as he registered his first classical win over World No. 1 Magnus Carlsen, which also made headlines for Carlsen’s angry reaction. Although he lost to Carlsen later in the tournament in their reverse fixture.

Gukesh also beat fellow Indian star Arjun Erigaisi for the first time in classical format in 2025 Norway Chess. Gukesh stayed in the title race until the final round, eventually finishing third behind Carlsen and American GM Hikaru Nakamura.

The Tamil Nadu-born player recently took part in the SuperUnited Rapid and Blitz Croatia, where he secured the first prize in the rapid section. However, Gukesh finished third in the blitz section and failed to win the title, which Carlsen took home thanks to his remarkable comeback in the later stages of the tournament.