D Gukesh delivered a major highlight at the SuperUnited Rapid and Blitz Croatia by defeating reigning world champion Magnus Carlsen in the Rapid section, marking another significant moment in his rising career. This remarkable win added to his recent classical victory over Carlsen at Norway Chess. Despite an outstanding run in the Rapid games, Gukesh faced a dip in form during the Blitz portion of the tournament. His inconsistent results in the Blitz section caused him to finish third overall in the standings.
The young Indian grandmaster’s triumph over Carlsen was especially noteworthy, considering Carlsen’s previous skepticism about Gukesh’s capabilities in shorter time formats. The loss seemingly made Carlsen reconsider his earlier remarks.
Speaking to The New Indian Express, Gukesh’s head coach Grzegorz Gajewski offered insight into the young champion’s progress in rapid formats. “We are doing some exercises strictly devoted to the faster time control. Just some training games and exercises,” he said.
Gajewski also highlighted the unique challenges Gukesh faces as a 19-year-old world champion. “Chess wise, it’s a tricky period because as world champion, the expectation is that much higher. In the process, many people forget that he’s only 19. Sometimes, he even forgets that he’s only 19. It’s about managing his own ambitions, he’s of course very hungry and just wanting to crush everybody on the board. But the reality is that the competition is very strong and many of his opponents are older, even the very young guys are older than him.”
He stressed that the main focus remains on all-around improvement rather than excelling in just one format. “For me, the most important thing is for Gukesh to develop as a player not in terms of Classical or Rapid or Blitz… there are many areas to improve and once he improves in those areas he will become stronger in all formats. You just focus on the improvements,” Gajewski added.
Although Gukesh lost to Carlsen in the Blitz round, with Carlsen demonstrating his expertise in fast-paced games, the Indian prodigy still managed a podium finish. Carlsen ended the event at the top of the overall standings with 22.5 points, followed by Wesley So (20), Gukesh (19.5), and Jan-Krzysztof Duda (16). For Carlsen, the victory offered a chance to avenge his earlier defeats in classical and rapid formats against Gukesh.