Norway Chess 2025: Gukesh gets first classical win over Erigaisi; Humpy third in women’s section

Reigning world champion D. Gukesh pulled off a gritty escape to beat compatriot Arjun Erigaisi for the first time in classical chess, jumping to sole second after Round 7 of the Norway Chess tournament.

Playing with white, Gukesh was on the back foot for over three hours but held firm under pressure. He seized his chance when Erigaisi faltered in time trouble and forced resignation after a tense battle.

“Probably I was just losing it at some point… I just had to keep making moves, which doesn’t lose on the spot and in the time scrambles, things happen,” Gukesh said after the win.

The 19-year-old now has 11.5 points, leapfrogging defending champion Magnus Carlsen (11), who beat Hikaru Nakamura in Armageddon. Arjun dropped to fifth with 7.5. Fabiano Caruana leads the standings with 12.5 points after defeating Wei Yi, who remains bottom with 6.5. Nakamura is fourth on 8.5.

This was Gukesh’s second straight classical win — no tie-break required — and a revenge of sorts for his Round 2 loss to Erigaisi. The victory also followed a comeback win over Carlsen in Round 6.

Gukesh’s coach, Grzegorz Gajewski, acknowledged it wasn’t his cleanest performance but praised the resilience.

“Probably not his best game ever… but definitely a very good second half of the game,” he said.

“When you’re in such trouble and you keep fighting and get rewarded for it… you have even more faith that it makes sense to keep fighting.”

Gajewski credited Gukesh’s mindset shift and relentless accuracy:

“He’s demanding the very highest level of precision… and if you’re not up to it, you might mess up—even if you’re number one in the world.”

Asked whether the win over Erigaisi meant more than beating Carlsen, the coach replied, “Yes, definitely, Erigaisi is a very difficult opponent to beat… but I would not compare the two games.”

“Gukesh was just making moves; he was completely in the zone… His extraordinary calculation abilities, combined with his fighting spirit, help him defend so many positions.”

In the women’s section, Ju Wenjun leads with 11.5 points. Anna Muzychuk (11) beat Koneru Humpy (10.5) in Armageddon. R. Vaishali lost to China’s Lei Tingjie in time trouble.