Following a rest day on 10/9, Gukesh suffered his third straight defeat, this time against the 16-year-old Turkish player Ediz Gurel. The 19-year-old world champion, playing black, started strong and gained a significant advantage in the middlegame. However, he allowed Gurel a counterattack opportunity along the open e-file.

Gukesh during round 7 of the FIDE Grand Swiss in Samarkand, Uzbekistan on 11/9/2025. Photo: FIDE

The game transitioned into the endgame with both sides having advanced pawns. Gukesh sacrificed a bishop to stop the white pawn's advance. However, his two rooks couldn't support his black pawns' promotion. Gurel's rooks, being more active, coordinated to capture the black pawns. After 51 moves, the Indian player resigned.

Gurel becomes the second 16-year-old to defeat Gukesh at the 2025 Grand Swiss, after Abhimanyu Mishra. Ranked 97th globally with an Elo rating of 2,631, the Turkish player is among the top young talents. His actual playing strength could be even higher than his current rating.

This marks Gukesh's third consecutive loss in the tournament, following defeats to Mishra, Nikolas Theodorou, and now Gurel. He has dropped 15.4 Elo points since the start, falling to 10th in the world rankings. With three points after seven rounds, Gukesh's performance trails even the sole female player in the Open section, Divya Deshmukh, who has 3.5 points.

The 2025 Grand Swiss, taking place from 4/9 to 15/9, is the year's strongest Swiss-system tournament. Featuring 115 players, including 114 Grandmasters, it will run for 11 rounds. The top two players will qualify for the 2026 Candidates Tournament.

After round seven, the surprising leaders are Nihal Sarin and Matthias Bluebaum, both with 5.5 points and Elo ratings below 2,700. Following closely behind is a group of seven players with five points, including Alireza Firouzja and Hans Niemann. Round eight will see Bluebaum (white) face Sarin on board one, and Firouzja play against Niemann on board two.

Xuan Binh