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Eight 2700+ grandmasters — including perennial favourite Magnus Carlsen — and two rating underdogs are playing rapid and blitz chess in Zagreb. While Ivan Saric and Constantin Lupulescu, the aforementioned underdogs, are struggling after two days of action, a fierce fight for the top spots is taking place between stellar competitors.
After Vishy Anand scored two wins and a draw on Wednesday to take the sole lead, Fabiano Caruana and Ian Nepomniachtchi showed their class to catch the Indian legend on the second day of play. Caruana kicked off the day with a quick victory over Carlsen, drew Anand, and beat Jan-Krzysztof Duda, while Nepo recovered from a winless first three rounds by scoring three wins in a row on Thursday.
Master Class Vol. 12: Viswanathan Anand
This DVD allows you to learn from the example of one of the best players in the history of chess and from the explanations of the authors how to successfully organise your games strategically, and how to keep your opponent permanently under pressure.
Duda and Dommaraju Gukesh stand a point behind the leaders (wins are worth two points in the rapid), while Carlsen and Richard Rapport stand a further point back.
Shockingly, Carlsen lost two games in a row at the start of the day. The former world champion was surprised in the opening by Caruana, and then faltered in a queen endgame against Alireza Firouzja. A major consolation for the Norwegian was his sixth-round victory over Anand, as a technical position with a rook and knight per side saw Carlsen outplaying his esteemed opponent.
Three more rounds of rapid chess are left to be played in Zagreb. The ever-streaky Nepomniachtchi is set to face current co-leaders Caruana and Anand in rounds 8 and 9, respectively.
Two of the best ever — Magnus Carlsen beat co-leader Vishy Anand after losing two consecutive games in Zagreb | Photo: Lennart Ootes
Analysis by Karsten Müller
Alireza Firouzja got the better of Magnus Carlsen | Photo: Lennart Ootes
Analysis by Charles Sullivan and Karsten Müller
Master Class Vol. 12: Viswanathan Anand
This DVD allows you to learn from the example of one of the best players in the history of chess and from the explanations of the authors how to successfully organise your games strategically, and how to keep your opponent permanently under pressure.
Fabiano Caruana | Photo: Lennart Ootes
