SuperUnited Croatia: Carlsen, Gukesh, So and Duda share the lead

by Carlos Alberto Colodro
7/3/2025 – The SuperUnited Rapid & Blitz Croatia tournament kicked off in Zagreb with three rounds of rapid chess played on the opening day. Magnus Carlsen, a three-time winner of the event, began steadily with two draws and a win to share the lead with Jan-Krzysztof Duda, Wesley So (pictured) and Gukesh Dommaraju. The tournament features seven from the world's top ten players. | Photo: Lennart Ootes
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Four co-leaders

The SuperUnited Rapid & Blitz Croatia tournament got underway in Zagreb with three rounds of rapid chess (25+10) played on the opening day. The event marks the third stop of this year's Grand Chess Tour, following tournaments in Warsaw and Bucharest. Zagreb is hosting for the sixth time in the ten-year history of the GCT.

The tournament features a strong ten-player field, including seven members of the current world top ten. Points from the rapid games count double, with the blitz section (to be played later under a 5+2 time control) to follow over two days.

Magnus Carlsen, who is not a regular participant in this year's Tour, leads the field in Zagreb as a wildcard entrant. A three-time winner of this event (2019, 2022 and 2023), the former world champion began his campaign with two draws and a win. His performance was solid if not flawless: in round one, Carlsen drew against Jan-Krzysztof Duda but came close to losing after over-pressing in a queen endgame that should have ended peacefully. In round two, however, he demonstrated his renowned endgame prowess, converting a seemingly equal minor piece ending into a full point against Wesley So. A draw in round three completed a day that left Carlsen well-placed on 4 points (1 win, 2 draws).

Magnus Carlsen

Magnus Carlsen | Photo: Lennart Ootes

Wesley So also collected 4 points on day one. He opened with a win over Fabiano Caruana and closed the day with a victory against Anish Giri, bouncing back quickly from his loss to Carlsen in the second round. So's performance leaves him sharing the early lead with Carlsen.

Gukesh Dommaraju, the reigning world champion, also ended the day on 4 points. Despite a loss to Duda in the first round, Gukesh recovered impressively with back-to-back wins against Alireza Firouzja and Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu. Carlsen had remarked before the tournament that Gukesh was not yet at world-champion level in faster time controls, but the 18-year-old's results on the opening day challenge that assessment.

Spectator interest in Zagreb remains high, and the event continues to offer an excellent mix of elite competition and local engagement.

Gukesh Dommaraju

Co-leader Gukesh Dommaraju | Photo: Lennart Ootes

Duda ½-½ Carlsen

Analysis by André Schulz

Jan-Krzysztof Duda

Jan-Krzysztof Duda

Standings after round 3

All games

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Topics: SuperUnited Rapid & Blitz Croatia 2025
Carlos Colodro is a Hispanic Philologist from Bolivia. He works as a freelance translator and writer since 2012. A lot of his work is done in chess-related texts, as the game is one of his biggest interests, along with literature and music.
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