India’s D Gukesh wins against Magnus Carlsen for the second time this year

New Delhi (India) July 4: On Thursday, Magnus Carlsen lost to reigning world champion D Gukesh in the Grand Chess Tour's sixth round. Gukesh defeated the World No. 1 and now holds the only lead with 10 points when they face each other in Zagreb.

The 18-year-old won round six of the SuperUnited Rapid and Blitz Croatia, a Grand Chess Tour event, on Thursday by using the Black pieces against the world No. 1. He defeated Carlsen for the second time in a row, and with 10 points from six games, he became the sole leader in the rankings.

Gukesh said, “Yes, beating Magnus is always special, for sure. I think this also gives a bit more confidence in a sense that, like, I just had a horrible position from the opening. I just mixed up something really bad. It's nice that, like, two losing positions in a row, I could win against Magnus” after the win.

This time there was no violent crash on the table. However, Carlsen had to step down against the current world champion once more. Carlsen was noticeably shaken after a rare classical setback in their last match, which took place at Norway Chess last month. It was a faster game this time in Zagreb but the outcome was the same. 

Carlsen had attacked Gukesh as one of the "presumably weaker players" earlier in the tournament when talking about the Croatian field.

Garry Kasparov, a chess legend who was a part of the commentary team said, “Now we can question Magnus’ domination. This is not just his second loss to Gukesh, it’s a convincing loss. It’s not a miracle… or that Gukesh just kept benefitting from Magnus’ terrible mistakes. It was a game that was a big fight. And Magnus lost” regarding the game.

Gukesh gave a composed, confident performance that served as a reminder that he is no longer an outsider. He is competing on an equal footing with the biggest names in the game.

For the teenager, the outcome concluded an incredible day. After losing to Jan-Krzysztof Duda in the beginning, he recovered well and defeated Alireza Firouzja and fellow Indian R Praggnanandhaa before defeating Carlsen. The day ended with three consecutive victories.

Carlsen had a more chaotic day. He had to settle for draws against Duda and Ivan Aric after winning a long-drawn match against Wesley So. He is now four points behind Gukesh going into the last day of the fast segment. 

The two will play each other again, and they will use the blitz format for their next games. Rapid wins are awarded two points in the Grand Chess Tour format, whereas the blitz games that come after are worth one point each.

Aadrika Tayal