Magnus Carlsen and D Gukesh before Superunited Rapid & Blitz Leg of Grand Chess Tour (picture via x/@chessbaseindia) With the superior leg of Rapid & Blitz from the Grand Chess Tour on Wednesday in Zagreb, all eyes are again on Magnus Carlsen and Gukesh Dommaraju, because their rivalry continues to cook with tension, potential and now pointed words. Before their rapid and Blitz rise, former world champion Carlsen did not stay when he asked about the ruling world champion. “Gukesh did nothing to indicate that he would be doing well in such a tournament,” Carlsen told the media, as Chess24 quoted. “I hope he can play better for him, but I play him in this tournament, I approach him when I play one of probably weaker players,” he added. The note focused on the highly anticipated match between the 33 -year -old Norwegian icon and the 19 -year -old Indian miracle. Gukesh may have held his nerve in longer formats, but Fast and Blitz are Carlsen’s domain and the veteran is not ashamed to underline the same thing.
Magnus Carlsen to D Gukesh (picture over x)
Carlsen added another layer to the mix and also bounced on his return to Zagreb, a town that missed in 2024 because of his mother. “A little mixed bags for me,” Carlsen admitted. “It’s a format that I really enjoy, and a city that I really enjoy. I have a lot of good memories, but I also have very, very difficult memories when I didn’t play last year.” This week’s tournament will see how Carlsen and Gukesh face in one fast and two Blitz games. They joined first -class fields, including Indian R Pragggnanandhaa, Alireza Firouzja, Fabiano Caruana and Nodirbek Abdusattorov.
Vote
Do you believe that Carlsen’s comments will increase the pressure on Gukesh during the tournament?
At the now viral moment that shared the Grand Chess Tour tour, they shared Carlsen and Gukesh Tichý Handshake and seemed like a gentle but powerful nod to rivalry forward.
