Indian teenager Praggnanandhaa goes down fighting to Norway’s Carlsen in Chess World Cup final

World No.1 chess player by rating, Norwegian Grandmaster (GM) Magnus Carlsen (32) won the FIDE World Cup after defeating Indian prodigy GM R. Praggnanandhaa (18) in tie-breaker at Baku in Azerbaijan on Thursday.

“Praggnanandhaa is the runner-up of the 2023 FIDE World Cup! Congratulations to the 18-year-old Indian prodigy on an impressive tournament!” the International Chess Federation posted on X after the match.

On his way to the final, Praggnanandhaa beat, among others, world number two Hikaru Nakamura and Fabiano Caruana, who now occupies the third spot in global rankings, the post said.

Praggnanandhaa will be taking home his share from the total prize money of $1,834,000, a silver medal for being the first runner-up and a ticket to the 2024 FIDE Candidates tournament.

Former world champion Carlsen clinched the title by winning the first tie-breaker game and then drawing the second one.

In the second tie-breaker, Carlsen with white pieces seemed to be in a hurry to wind up the game soon and went in for Queen exchange at the 17th move.

Soon after, the two players exchanged their bishops. At the end of the 22nd move, both players had four pawns, one rook, knight and a bishop each. The two then signed the peace treaty.

Playing with white pieces in the first game of the tie-breaker, Praggnanandhaa had an advantage in the initial stages and later maintained equality for a large part of the 47-move game.

However, the Indian player suffered a reversal from the 37th move onwards. At that point of time, the players were left with two rooks and minor pieces — two knights for Carlsen and a knight and a light coloured bishop for Praggnanandhaa.

The Indian player was also much behind on the clock and resigned on the 47th move. It was the maiden World Cup title for Carlsen.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday hailed Praggnanandhaa for his runner-up finish at the FIDE chess World Cup in Baku.

"We are proud of Praggnanandhaa for his remarkable performance at the FIDE World Cup! He showcased his exceptional skills and gave a tough fight to the formidable Magnus Carlsen in the finals,” PM Modi wrote on ‘X’, formerly Twitter. "This is no small feat. Wishing him the very best for his upcoming tournaments.”

Agencies