The first three rounds of rapid chess at the Gashimov Memorial ended with Nijat Abasov as the sole leader in the standings. Abasov, who is likely to play in the Candidates Tournament next year, beat Boris Gelfand and Richard Rapport in consecutive rounds to finish the day with 5/6 points (wins are worth 2 points in the rapid section). Sharing second place on 4/6 scores are Vidit Gujrathi, Arjun Erigaisi and Rauf Mamedov. | Photo: Official website