World Champion D Gukesh of India surged into a joint lead with world No. 1 Magnus Carlsen of Norway, Poland’s Jan-Krzysztof Duda, and American Wesley So, each scoring 4 points after the first three rounds of the SuperUnited Rapid & Blitz Croatia 2025, part of the Grand Chess Tour.

Despite an opening loss to Duda, Gukesh rebounded with decisive victories over France’s Alireza Firouzja and compatriot R Praggnanandhaa. Carlsen secured a win against So and drew with local favorite Ivan Saric and Duda, while So notched victories over Fabiano Caruana and Anish Giri. Praggnanandhaa struggled, drawing with Firouzja and Nodirbek Abdusattorov before falling to Gukesh.

With six rapid rounds and 18 blitz rounds remaining, Carlsen remains the favorite, but Gukesh’s resilience shone through. “Duda played well, but I stayed focused,” Gukesh said. Carlsen’s 75-move endgame grind against So highlighted his prowess, while Saric held firm against the world No. 1.

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Standings after Round 3:

1-4. Magnus Carlsen (Norway), Jan-Krzysztof Duda (Poland), Wesley So (USA), D Gukesh (India) – 4 points each;

5-6. Ivan Saric (Croatia), Anish Giri (Netherlands) – 3 points each;

7-10. Fabiano Caruana (USA), Nodirbek Abdusattorov (Uzbekistan), Alireza Firouzja (France), R Praggnanandhaa (India) – 2 points each.

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