World champion D Gukesh faces a tough challenge as he tries to bounce back against Fabiano Caruana from the USA in the Freestyle Grand Slam chess tournament in Hamburg, Germany. Gukesh lost to Caruana in the first game of the quarterfinals on Sunday, which is a rare setback for him.
D Gukesh Faces Tough Challenge Against Fabiano Caruana
Now, Gukesh must perform well with the black pieces to even the score, as Caruana, who has been hoping to become world champion for years, is in the lead.
Freestyle chess involves 960 random starting positions, where the pieces’ positions are changed on the back rank, though the pawns stay in place. This format was first promoted by the legendary Bobby Fischer, and with growing support, it could become the future of chess.
Gukesh will need to fight hard, as his opening moves have already been questioned, and he’ll have to build a whole new set of strategies. In the first quarterfinal game, Caruana nearly lost, but now he’ll approach the next game with renewed enthusiasm.
In the first quarterfinal game, Gukesh played well for most of the match, making smart moves when needed. However, he missed an opportunity to sacrifice his queen in the later stages of the middle game, which cost him the win.
Caruana quickly took control of the game and didn’t let Gukesh have a chance to recover.
Magnus Carlsen Continues Strong Performance in the Tournament
Meanwhile, Magnus Carlsen, the main figure behind the tour, picked up where he left off and won against Nodirbek Abdusattorov from Uzbekistan.
Alireza Firouzja from France lost to Vincent Keymer from Germany in the opening game. Interestingly, Firouzja chose Keymer as his first-round opponent after winning the qualifier event.
Javokhir Sindarov from Uzbekistan drew with Hikaru Nakamura in the other quarterfinal match. Meanwhile, in the ninth-place decider, American Levon Aronian won his first game, beating Vladimir Fedoseev from Slovenia.
ALSO READ: Champions Trophy: 5 Biggest Partnerships In The History
