World champion D Gukesh showed resilience at the St. Louis Rapid and Blitz, bouncing back from an early setback to defeat top American grandmasters Wesley So and Fabiano Caruana. The Indian star ended the rapid section of the Grand Chess Tour event in fourth place, keeping himself in contention ahead of the blitz phase.
Early loss, strong recovery
For the third day in a row, Gukesh opened his campaign with a loss — this time against Leinier Dominguez Perez. Despite enjoying a decent position from the opening, the game slipped away in the middle stages, with Dominguez invading the seventh rank to clinch a decisive advantage.
Unfazed, Gukesh regrouped in round eight to outplay Wesley So. The American faltered under pressure as Gukesh converted a strong position with ease.
Dramatic turnaround against Caruana
In the final rapid round, Gukesh faced tournament leader Fabiano Caruana. The American had the upper hand for most of the game, but a costly oversight turned the tables, allowing Gukesh to score a memorable win.
Caruana still topped the rapid standings with 14 points, followed by Levon Aronian on 13. France’s Maxime Vachier-Lagrave sits in third with 11 points, just one ahead of Gukesh.
Standings and other results
Dominguez, Wesley So, and Uzbekistan’s Nodirbek Abdusattorov share fifth place on nine points, two clear of Vietnam’s Liem Le Quang. American Sam Shankland is ninth with five points, while Grigoriy Oparin is last with three.
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