D Gukesh takes Magnus Carlsen’s post-loss outburst in sporting manner; says ‘I have also banged a lot of tables…’

D Gukesh secured his maiden classical victory over Magnus Carlsen in a thrilling turn of events at Norway Chess 2025, on Monday (June 2). Just days after Carlsen, a five-time world champion, dealt a significant setback to Gukesh in the tournament’s opening round, the young Indian champion bounced back.

Gukesh turned a seemingly lost position into a victory, earning three crucial points. However, Carlsen’s reaction after losing the game caught everyone’s attention. The World no.1 was unable to control his anger after the defeat and banged the table. Gukesh gave his take on his opponent’s reaction.

Magnus Carlsen’s reaction after losing the game

The incident took place towards the end of their round 6 clashes when D Gukesh registered turned the tables in his favour and registered a win against Magnus Carlsen. Frustrated Magnus banged the table on which the chessboard was kept, leaving the commentators in total shock. He then gave a cold handshake to Gukesh before collecting and started putting the pieces back on the table. The video of the incident went viral on social media.

D Gukesh’s reaction

Gukesh took the entire incident in sporting manner. “I have also banged a lot of tables in my career,” he was quoted by Chess.com. Speaking about his win the 19-year-old expressed, “It was not the way I wanted it to be, but okay, I will take it.

Comeback by the Indian player

Gukesh jumped to the third spot with 8.5 points after the victory. The Indian player is trailing the world No.1 Carlsen and American Fabiano Caruana. It was a huge comeback for Gukesh, who seemed to lose the game against Carlsen but changed the situation to claim his maiden Classical chess contest in 62 moves.

Gukesh’s coach Grzegorz Gajewski

Gukesh’s Polish coach said the win would give him “a huge pump” in future battles with the Norwegian.

“The win just gives a huge pump of confidence to Gukesh because once you’ve done it, you know you can do it again. And that’s the plan,” said Gajewski. When asked if other players from India will suddenly feel confident about themselves beating Carlsen following Gukesh’s feat, he said, it certainly does.