The Freestyle Chess Grand Tour event in Weissenhaus, Germany, concluded its round robin phase with a notable outcome: reigning World Champion D Gukesh advanced to the knockout stage, albeit without registering a single victory. His progression comes after a challenging series of games, including a highly anticipated encounter against former World Champion Magnus Carlsen.
Gukesh finished the round robin as the eighth-placed player among the field of ten. Day 2 mirrored his performance on Day 1, resulting in one loss and the remaining games ending in draws. The most significant result of the day was his loss to Magnus Carlsen. This marked the first time the two met over the board since Gukesh claimed the World Championship title in December.
The game against Carlsen, the final match of the round robin stage for Gukesh, unfolded as a tense battle. The opening and middlegame saw both players navigating a complex, yet seemingly balanced position with skillful play. However, as is often the case with the Norwegian maestro, the endgame proved to be Carlsen`s domain. Under the increasing pressure of the clock, Gukesh committed a critical error involving his knight. Carlsen capitalized decisively, expertly restricting Gukesh`s pieces and leaving the World Champion with no viable path forward, leading to his eventual resignation.
Gukesh`s journey to the knockouts wasn`t without further moments of precariousness. In his match against Fabiano Caruana, Gukesh found himself in a losing position during the endgame, with the American Grandmaster holding a clear advantage. Fortune favored Gukesh, however, when Caruana made a crucial blunder, allowing Gukesh to escape with a perpetual check and secure a draw.
His other games on Day 2 saw relatively quiet draws against Vladimir Fedoseev and Vincent Keymer, the latter having served as one of Gukesh`s seconds during his recent World Championship triumph.
With the round robin standings finalized, the players proceeded to the knockout pairings. Alireza Firouzja, topping the group, selected Vincent Keymer as his opponent. Javokhir Sindarov chose Hikaru Nakamura. Fabiano Caruana opted to face D Gukesh, setting up an immediate rematch of their dramatic round robin encounter. This left Magnus Carlsen paired against Nodirbek Abdusattorov.
Freestyle Chess Grand Tour, Weissenhaus – Final Round Robin Standings:
- Alireza Firouzja – 6.5 points
- Javokhir Sindarov – 6.5 points
- Fabiano Caruana – 6 points
- Magnus Carlsen – 5.5 points
- Hikaru Nakamura – 5.5 points
- Vincent Keymer – 4 points
- Nodirbek Abdusattorov – 3.5 points
- Dommaraju Gukesh – 3.5 points
- Vladimir Fedoseev – 2.5 points
- Levon Aronian – 1.5 points
Despite a rocky start in the round robin, Gukesh`s objective of reaching the knockout stage has been achieved. The real test now begins as he faces Caruana in a challenging quarterfinal, needing to shift gears from survival mode to victory mode in the unique format of Freestyle Chess.
