D Gukesh is the reigning world champion in chess. In 2024, he had become the youngest champion in chess history at the age of just 18 and since then he has become a household name.
Reigning world champion D Gukesh has been honoured with the ‘Titan of the Year’ award by Tata Group’s watch-making giant, Titan which has launched a limited edition watch as a tribute to his efforts on the chess board.
Gukesh became the youngest chess world champion at the age of just 18 when he defeated Ding Liren in late 2024. He is also only the second Indian after Viswanathan Anand to become a chess world champion.
Price of Gukesh’s Titan watch
Titan had last year given the award to Wing Commander Rakesh Sharma who was the first Indian to travel to space, a feat he achieved in 1984. In his honour also a watch was unvieled called the ‘Unity watch’.
Gukesh became the second recipient of the award and the first from the sports industry. The watch was unveiled on February 6 at an event in Mumbai where Gukesh was honoured as well.
“Gukesh never rushed the moment. While others chased speed, he chose stillness. While the clock counted down, his clarity only grew sharper. In chess, time reveals temperament. In Gukesh, it revealed composure far beyond his years. To honour that calm command over seconds and decisions, we introduce the Titan Grandmaster, a 500-piece limited edition tribute watch,” Titan wrote in a social media post.
Presenting Titan of the Year 2026: Gukesh Dommaraju – The Youngest World Chess Champion
Gukesh never rushed the moment.
While others chased speed, he chose stillness.
While the clock counted down, his clarity only grew sharper.In chess, time reveals temperament.
In Gukesh,… pic.twitter.com/NvLpYU6F6h— Titan Watches India (@titanwatches) February 10, 2026
The watch is priced at a whooping Rs 69,995 and capped at 500 pieces. It has chess pieces at hour marks like Queen at 12 O’clock, Rook at 9 O’clock, Bishop at 3 O’clock and King at 6 O’clock, while the remaining indices take the form of pawns. A chess board is also engraved in the face of the watch.
Gukesh prepares to defend his title
The reigning world champion did not have the best of 2025 and this year too did not start on the best of notes as he had an
underwhelming outing at the recent Tata Steel Chess Masters. This year is going to be crucial for Gukesh as he prepares to defend his crown which will be on the line towards the end of 2026.
His challenger will be determined next month at the Candidates where his compatriot R Praggnanandhaa is one of the eight competitors.
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