 "While Gukesh suffered a horrific Day 1 in Norway, Erigaisi made a brilliant debut. Images: Gukesh/X/FIDE")
The opening round of Norway Chess 2025 gave fans some exciting games, with Magnus Carlsen showing his class once again. In his first classical game against the current world champion Gukesh Dommaraju since the teenager won the title, Carlsen secured a crucial victory with white pieces.
Gukesh at the bottom after Round 1
Hikaru Nakamura also had a great start to the event as he defeated Fabiano Caruana in a long game where the latter struggled with time. Nakamura won the match with black pieces. He is currently in second place in the Norway Chess standings after Carlsen.
Meanwhile, Arjun Erigaisi managed to secure a win for India in the men’s event as he defeated China’s Wei Yi in Armageddon. Playing in his first Norway Chess, he took down fellow debutant Wei with black pieces after their classical game ended in a draw. It was a solid start for the young Indian grandmaster.
Koneru tops women’s standings on Day 1
In the Women’s Norway Chess 2025, compatriots Koneru Humpy and Vaishali Rameshbabu clashed in the opening round. Humpy took full advantage of a mistake made by Vaishali and won the only classical game of the round in the women’s event. Anna Muzychuk and Lei Tingjie won in Armageddon tiebreakers.
Muzychuk beat Sara Khadem, while Lei defeated women’s world champion Ju Wenjun. Koneru is currently at the top of the standings after Round 1. Muzychuk is second, followed by Tingjie at third, Wenjun at fourth, Khadem at fifth, and Vaishali at sixth.
Gukesh vs Erigaisi on Day 2
The tournament has just started but the opening day already gave us a lot of drama. In the men’s game between Carlsen and Gukesh, the Indian grandmaster at one point played the rare ’en passant’ move, where a special pawn capture is allowed diagonally.
Day 2 of the Norway Chess 2025 will begin at the same time at 8:30 PM IST. Both Indians in the men’s section will play each other on Tuesday. Erigaisi and Gukesh will be up against each other, while Nakamura will face Carlsen and Caruana will lock horns against Wei.
In the women’s event, Khadem will play Ju Wenjun, Vaishali will be up against Lei Tingjie, and Muzychuk will face Koneru.
Norway Chess 2025: Standings after Round 1
| Position | Player | Points |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Magnus Carlsen | 3.0 |
| 2 | Hikaru Nakamura | 3.0 |
| 3 | Arjun Erigaisi | 1.5 |
| 4 | Wei Yi | 1.0 |
| 5 | Fabiano Caruana | 0.0 |
| 6 | Gukesh Dommaraju | 0.0 |
Norway Chess Women 2025: Standings after Round 1
| Position | Player | Points |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Koneru Humpy | 3.0 |
| 2 | Anna Muzychuk | 1.5 |
| 3 | Lei Tingjie | 1.5 |
| 4 | Ju Wenjun | 1.0 |
| 5 | Sara Khadem | 1.0 |
| 6 | Vaishali Rameshbabu | 0.0 |