Magnus Carlsen, Anish Giri, Vidit Gujrathi, Divya Deshmukh, Koneru Humpy in one team: How GCL made it possible

Magnus Carlsen, Anish Giri, Vidit Gujrathi, Divya Deshmukh, Koneru Humpy all playing for APL Pipers this season Magnus Carlsen, Anish Giri, Vidit Gujrathi, Koneru Humpy, Divya Deshmukh, Volodar Murzin. Wait. This isn’t an all-star exhibition tournament draft, but the six-man roster the Alpine APL Pipers have assembled to defend their Global Chess League (GCL) Season 4 crown in Bengaluru.If last season was about breaking the grip of the Triveni Continental Kings to claim their first title, Season 4, which begins this Saturday, is likely to be about something much scarier for the rest of the field.Combining world number one Magnus Carlsen with positional titans Anish and Vidit, supported by the experienced Humpy, FIDE Women’s World Cup winner Divya and former world rapid champion Murzina aboard the Wonders, the Pipers have created what could be the most formidable franchise line-up ever to be placed on the 64-square battlefield.But how do you build a modern Dream Team under a strict draft system where every single team enters the bidding room with equal resources?How can anyone build a team like that?Pipers coach Pravin Thipsay believes that building a team of this caliber is not about collecting shiny names.“It’s not the kind of building a star-studded line-up,” Thipsay told TimesofIndia.com during an exclusive interaction, dismissing the notion that the list came together by chance.“It is important to have strong players because it is a double round to qualify for the top two and then it will be a one-on-one match. So there are two stages. We should have a team that is very good at beating some teams to finish in the top two and in the second stage, once we finish in the top two, it is important to beat the other teams.”In the franchise ecosystem, every team starts with the same bank of draft points.Securing a board icon like Magnus Carlsen, who returns to lead the Pipers after missing last season, requires an immediate, massive financial outlay. The moment you step on the top board, your remaining wallet is immediately squeezed, forcing trainers to high-wire balance for the Superstar and Prodigy boards.“The best parameter to judge a player’s strength or current strength is Elo rating, and that’s why I personally try to have the highest rated players in my team,” Thipsay admitted.“Now the draft process is very clear and everyone starts with the same number of points. How you spend those points when selecting players is important.”In fact, every coach walks into a venue and watches the exact same elite names at every level.“Very often you have to spend most of your points on one or two players and that puts you in a difficult situation where you have fewer points and you don’t always get the best player you want,” added the 67-year-old veteran Grandmaster. “No one is going to get all six players of their choice because other players are being targeted. So you have to see a balance somewhere. If you’re able to get the top three or most wanted players on your team, I think that’s a good team to start with. It’s a tricky process to outsmart other coaches. It’s a lot more complicated than it looks.”By securing Giri and Vidit to flank Carlsen on the top boards, while locking down Humpy, Divya Deshmukh and Murzin, who as a former rapid world champion offers incredible firepower in quick chess, the Pipers were able to achieve the ultimate draft boom across all board categories.Behind the Champion’s BurdenCarrying the title of defending champion only increases the target on the back. Coach Thipsay knows this very well.“The most important thing is that we should not be overconfident as the defending champions,” Thipsay told the site with some palpable harshness. “And again, we shouldn’t be too attentive to the media. As the defending champions, the media will approach us more than the other teams. But the most important factor in the game of chess is your preparation, your practice, your rest that day.”

The Pipers secured the title last season (GCL Photo)

Combating the attention that inevitably surrounds a team with Carlsen, Giri and rising elite talent, Thipsay has already mapped out a tight operational barrier for the tournament.“We will see that our players do not lose focus at any stage due to media attention or anything else. So I will limit promotional activities to a short period, very often after matches,” he revealed.The preparation of the defending championsOver the past few weeks, Thipsay has focused on the current form of his players rather than relying on their classic reputation.“It’s important to prepare once we know who’s playing who,” Thipsay acknowledged. “The order of the game plan was released, so we started to personally prepare against these opponents. The Icon panel would prepare against all the icons and so on. I personally look at the games of these players and the flaws in their recent games. I focus on finding the opponents’ flaws in their recent quick games, not the classic ones. So that is my strategy.”Nothing will stop the Pipers then?With the preliminary doubleheader set to kick off at The Lalit Ashok Bangalore, the main challenge for the Pipers is perhaps more psychological in nature. The underdog plays with unlimited freedom, while the favorite bears the weight of the result.“It’s the general public psychology and of course the psychology of the players that the opposition do better against the defending champions or against a stronger team,” Thipsay reflected.“The opponent we will face could be more ferocious, more prepared and more motivated to play us, simply because there is an opportunity to beat the defending champions.”Mitigating that threat for Thipsay means constantly reminding his roster of superstars that past titles and Elo ratings offer zero security once the clock starts ticking.“We have to take into account that the same opponents may not be that strong against other teams, but they could be strong against our team,” he warned. “The second challenge I see is that the fact that we won in the third season does not mean that we will win the fourth. Our team will have to be careful of the overconfidence that comes from the results in the preliminaries or earlier tournaments. Every game is different and how you played yesterday has no bearing on how you will play today.”SEE ALSO: All Teams of GCL 2026 TeamsAs the clock ticks down to Round 1 in Bengaluru, the Alpine APL Pipers stand on the precipice of GCL history. They constructed a masterpiece on paper. On board, the hard work starts from the beginning.“We are well prepared at this point,” Thipsay concluded with typical calmness. “The immediate goal is simple: to finish in the top two in preliminaries. Because there is no option after preliminaries. You have to try to be champion.”