Grand Chess Tour: Teenaged GM Gukesh defeats idol Anand in Rapid segment

Zagreb: Young Indian Grandmaster D Gukesh scored a memorable win over illustrious compatriot and idol Viswanathan Anand in the eighth round of the Rapid event of the 2023 SuperUnited Rapid and Blitz tournament, part of the Grand Chess Tour.

The 40-move win for the 17-year-old Gukesh late on Friday was his first ever over Anand and came in his maiden tournament match against the five-time world champion.

The two Indians have 10 points each and are tied for fourth place.

”It was a very important win. I’m happy,” Gukesh told the Grand Chess Tournament’s social media handle.

”I thought I was better, but he equalized quite easily. Then he blundered the back rank. And after that, the position got really tricky. It was very hard to play from there.

”We were discussing the game,” he said about the discussion he had with Anand after the match.

Fabiano Caruana and Ian Nepomniachtchi remained co-leaders after the final day of the Rapid event, each with 12 points.

While the day 1 leader Anand stumbled and fell two points behind the leaders, world No. 1 Magnus Carlsen bounced back into form to take the clear third position going into two full days of blitz next.

Apart from the loss to Gukesh, Anand could only draw his games against Jan-Krzysztof Duda (Poland) and Nepomniachtchi in rounds seven and nine respectively.

Gukesh started the final day of the Rapid section with a loss to Caruana before stunning Anand and holding Duda to a draw.

An 18-round blitz segment follows the rapid event in the tournament which features top players including Carlsen, Anand, and Nepomniachtchi among others.

The time control for the rapid portion is 25+10, with 2 points awarded for a win, 1 point for a draw, and 0 for a loss. The blitz portion will have a time control of 5+2, using the typical 1, 1/2, and 0 scoring system.

The Grand Chess Tour is a circuit of international events, featuring the world’s best players.