The MS Dhoni connection: How India’s 2011 World Cup-winning coach helped Gukesh D win the World Chess Championship

Indian great Gukesh Dommaraju was quick to mention that former Indian cricket captain MS Dhoni was his “idol” as a child after he won the World Chess Championship on Thursday by defeating defending champion Ding Liren of China in the final game. But there is another connection to cricket and Dhoni in the 18-year-old’s historic win in Singapore.

Competing in one of the biggest tournaments in a sport at age 18 can often be more of a challenge of mind than skill. When 23-year-old Magnus Carlsen, now considered one of the best in his sport, played his first World Cup against Indian legend Vishwanathan Anand in 2013, he actually felt his hands shaking. He also admitted in an interview that the mind often plays tricks on the player in such duels and causes him to self-doubt and panic.

After Gukesh won the Candidates Tournament earlier this year, he was looking for a mental coach and contacted Paddy Upton. The South African international served as the Indian cricket team’s mental conditioning and strategic leadership coach between 2008 and 2011, during which the team won the ODI World Cup title under Dhoni. Most recently, he served as the mental conditioning coach for the Indian men’s hockey team that won the bronze medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

“Gukesh studied the whole book”

On the way to becoming the youngest world champion of all time, the Indian suffered two setbacks. He lost the opening round and was later given a reality check by the Chinese in the 12th game, shortly after taking the lead with a win in the 11th game. But Gukesh recovered splendidly on both occasions, particularly in the final moments of game 14, where he admitted he was late in realizing Liren’s mistake with the title-clinching rook move.

Upton joins in The Indian Express After Gukesh’s win, he used the simplest analogy to address the Indian’s preparation for the draw.

“If you want to do well on an exam or test, you must study the entire book exceptionally well. Then you can take the exam with confidence. You don’t go in with hope,” he said. “And as far as studying the entire book for a World Chess Championship title, Gukesh studied the entire book. Down to the smallest details, down to the way he manages his sleep, the way he manages his downtime, the way he manages himself from moment to moment within a game. We see an exceptionally well-prepared professional.”

Upton didn’t provide details about how the mental preparations went over the past six months, but admitted they spent a lot of time discussing the minute details of each of his strategies. Even during the three weeks of the World Cup, Upton played a crucial role in helping Gukesh manage his time between sleeping, eating and exercising. This part of the preparation was likely reflected during the draw, when Gukesh spent a lot of time on the clock and meditating with his eyes closed, leaving Liren often guessing whenever he sneaked to get his opponent’s reaction to his move.

“We discussed both cases in great detail: when he makes his decisions about the moves to make and at the same time how he manages himself and his thoughts while his opponent is busy planning his move,” Upton added.

“Other aspects of his strategy that we discussed include how he should handle himself when he is ahead in the game; how to deal with yourself when you are behind in a game or under pressure within a game. We discussed how he would behave if he was ahead in the tournament with about a game to go; when he is behind when he has a 6-6 position. So there are very clear strategies, not just within a game, but within the entire championship, of how you deal with yourself when you’re behind, when you’re level and when you’re ahead.”