It looked like Magnus Carlsen would extend his lead in Norway Chess 2025 by another three points, with a second win against reigning World Champion D Gukesh. But the 18-year-old, who was in a losing position in the endgame, scripted a massive comeback, taking advantage of a blunder by the World No. 1 and sealing his first classical win against Carlsen.
Such was the style in which Gukesh won, that fans and experts are calling it the ‘turnaround of the year’. Carlsen was equally shellshocked by the win, and banged the table in frustration as the pieces also fell off. It also left the commentators and fans in shock, with the video going viral online. After Carlsen slammed the table, he also shook hands with Gukesh, who was also shocked that he finally bagged his first classical win vs the Norwegian, and the Indian GM stood up, looking dazed and confused. Carlsen then on his way back, patted Gukesh on his back, and walked off.
For Gukesh, it was the perfect revenge, as he had lost to Carlsen in the opening round. Gukesh has now climbed to third spot with 8.5 points and is behind Carlsen and Fabiano Caruana by just one point. It was also a big comeback by Gukesh, who didn’t look like he was in good form in the opening round loss to Carlsen. But on Sunday, he turned things around to seal a win against Carlsen, in 62 moves and over four hours.