No draws for Carlsen
Magnus Carlsen reached the halfway point of the Clutch Chess: Champions Showdown as the sole leader. The world number one scored four wins from his six games and now sits in first place with 11½ points out of a possible 18. Although he admitted that he was still dissatisfied with his overall play, his performance against both world champion Gukesh Dommaraju and Hikaru Nakamura proved decisive for the standings.
Fabiano Caruana enjoyed the best day of the field, moving from last place into clear second on 10½ points thanks to four victories and a draw. Nakamura and Gukesh dropped to shared last on 7 points. As the scoring system doubled the reward for winning compared to day one, momentum shifted rapidly throughout the session.
On the third day of action, wins will be worth 3 points, while draws will only grant 1 point, further incentivising the contenders to play fighting chess.
The new sole leader in the four-player event, world number one and perennial favourite Magnus Carlsen | Photo: Lennart Ootes
Round 4
Caruana 2-2 Nakamura
Caruana and Nakamura split their mini-match 2–2, with both players picking up a win apiece, each with the black pieces. Caruana struck first in a middlegame with opposite-coloured bishops, where he succeeded in converting his more active piece and structural pressure into a full point.
Nakamura later levelled the daily score by prevailing in a knight endgame. One inaccuracy at the critical moment allowed the famed streamer to activate his king decisively.
Instead of 59.f4, White needed to prevent the black king from infiltrating with 59.Kd4. After the text move, Nakamura correctly went for 59…Kc5, and Caruana was unable to re-establish sufficient counterplay.
Carlsen 4-0 Gukesh
Carlsen, meanwhile, dominated Gukesh 4–0. Despite the clean sweep, the Norwegian made clear in post-game comments that he was far from fully satisfied with his level of chess. Still, he described his first win against the world champion as “the only good game” he has played so far in the tournament. Find below the game with annotations by Johannes Fischer.
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The second game required deeper calculation. A rook exchange left a king-and-pawn ending on the board that appeared drawable at first glance, but Carlsen correctly evaluated that the trade favoured his structure and technique. Gukesh later acknowledged that allowing the rooks to come off had been too optimistic.
Magnus Carlsen defeated Gukesh Dommaraju twice on Tuesday | Photo: Lennart Ootes
Round 5
Gukesh 2-2 Nakamura
Gukesh and Nakamura drew both games of their match, although the first encounter should have produced a decisive result. Nakamura erred by placing his rook on b7, but Gukesh did not find the winning continuation 46…Rb3+, a move that would have supported the b-pawn and preserved connected queenside passers.
Instead, play continued 46…Rf2+ 47.Kb1 Rxf5 48.Rxb6+ Kxa4, and the resulting configuration allowed Black sufficient counterplay to hold the balance.
The second game also lasted deep into the endgame before the position simplified to equality.
Caruana 4-0 Carlsen
Caruana completed a 4–0 demolition of Carlsen, serving as payback for day one when favourable positions slipped from his grasp. In the first game, Caruana steered into a Berlin endgame and later criticised Carlsen’s h2-h4 push, arguing that the move weakened the kingside structure prematurely.
Supported by a superior pawn majority, Caruana expanded forcefully and converted the attack with methodical accuracy.
The second encounter featured a more complicated struggle. Caruana sacrificed an exchange on a8 to prise open Black’s position, while Carlsen opted for the bold and provoking 10.Ke2. The American grandmaster showed how effectively one can attack a king stranded in the centre and eventually steered the game into a winning endgame. Find below the game with annotations by Karsten Müller.
Magnus Carlsen facing Fabiano Caruana | Photo: Lennart Ootes
Round 6
Caruana 3-1 Gukesh
Caruana preserved his strong daily score by defeating Gukesh in game one and drawing game two to take the mini-match 3–1. The highlight came with the tactical blow 36…Rxg2 in the first encounter.
This rook sacrifice is based on the unstoppable advance of the a-pawn that followed. Gukesh resigned the game at once.
Carlsen 4-0 Nakamura
Carlsen closed out his day with a 4–0 sweep over Nakamura, yet continued to downplay the overall quality of his chess. The first game illustrated how swiftly a passed pawn can become decisive in rapid time controls.
Nakamura appeared to underestimate the speed of Carlsen’s c-pawn after the queens left the board, and by the time he reacted the pawn’s advance could no longer be halted without decisive concessions.
The second game featured a Sicilian Dragon in which Carlsen gradually outmanoeuvred Nakamura, eventually heading into a favourable minor-piece ending that he converted with reliable technique. Find below the game with annotations by Karsten Müller.
Hikaru Nakamura | Photo: Lennart Ootes
