Chess Titans Clash: D Gukesh Draws Against Nakamura

In the Freestyle Grand Slam chess event, world champion D Gukesh drew with Hikaru Nakamura during the 5-8 place play-offs. Despite losing earlier to Fabiano Caruana, Gukesh matched Nakamura's aggressive strategy, ending in a theoretically drawn rook and pawns endgame. Meanwhile, Vincent Keymer upset Magnus Carlsen.

World chess champion D Gukesh managed a hard-earned draw against American grandmaster Hikaru Nakamura in the initial round of the 5-8 place play-offs at the Freestyle Grand Slam.

After suffering a semifinal defeat to Fabiano Caruana, Gukesh rebounded with a confident performance against Nakamura, a seasoned expert in this chess format.

The day featured a shocker as Magnus Carlsen was outmaneuvered by Vincent Keymer, while Nodirbek Abdusattorov and Alireza Firouzja, and Javokhir Sindarov and Caruana all finished their games in draws.

(With inputs from agencies.)