World chess champion D Gukesh endured a shocking one-move blunder in the sixth round of the Tata Steel Chess 2026 Masters, leading to his first defeat of the year against Nodirbek Abdusattorov. The 19-year-old Indian prodigy followed it with another loss to Anish Giri in the seventh round, marking back-to-back setbacks. Despite the mishap, Gukesh bounced back by defeating Vladimir Fedoseev on Sunday.
The Tata Steel Chess 2026 Masters tournament in Wijk aan Zee has been a challenging start for India's world champion D Gukesh. Entering the event as the reigning titleholder, the 19-year-old had drawn his first four games against Javokhir Sindarov, Jorden van Foreest, Arjun Erigaisi, and another opponent, leaving him without a win after four rounds.
The turning point came in the sixth round on Friday, January 24, 2026, when Gukesh faced old rival Nodirbek Abdusattorov. In a critical position, Gukesh made an unexplainable one-move blunder that handed the victory to Abdusattorov, marking Gukesh's first loss of the year. Abdusattorov described the error as unexplainable, highlighting its rarity among elite players. The blunder left Gukesh inconsolable, with observers noting it as part of a broader trend of mistakes at the tournament.
Reflecting after his subsequent win over Vladimir Fedoseev on Sunday, Gukesh smiled and said: “The best part about the blunder is that I cannot even explain how it happened. In a way, those kinds of blunders are perhaps easier to handle than the ones you can actually explain.” This resilience came after a second straight defeat in the seventh round against Anish Giri on Saturday.
Fellow Indian players faced difficulties too. Arjun Erigaisi lost to Vladimir Fedoseev in the fifth round, while R Praggnanandhaa remained winless, drawing with Matthias Bluebaum in the seventh round after starting with two losses and three draws, placing him at the bottom of the standings.
Magnus Carlsen commented on the pressures facing Gukesh, stating: “Unrealistic expectations placed on him... in part he brought it upon himself.” He added praise: “Gukesh could become one of the best of all time, but more likely, he'll end up being an elite player who had the best run of his life and became a champion. That in itself is already great.”
Experts have questioned if non-stop play is causing fatigue for young Indian stars like Gukesh and Praggnanandhaa, though they are selectively focusing on classical events in 2026 to avoid burnout.
