News 18 India
The Checkmate event in Arlington on Saturday erupted into controversy after American grandmaster Hikaru Nakamura celebrated his win over World Champion D Gukesh by hurling the captured king into the crowd.
The clip went viral within hours and split the chess world: some called it immature showmanship, others a deliberate gambit for entertainment.
That moment when @GMHikaru Nakamura turned around a lost position and checkmated World Champion Gukesh – picking up and throwing Gukesh’s king to the crowd, celebrating the 5-0 win of Team USA over Team India!Video: @adityasurroy21 pic.twitter.com/GuIlkm0GIe
— ChessBase India (@ChessbaseIndia) October 5, 2025
The result itself was clear: the USA swept India 5-0. But the fallout from the celebration quickly overshadowed the scoreboard.
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