GUWAHATI: The 18-year-old Grandmaster, Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa, claimed his first classical victory over World No. 1 Magnus Carlsen during the third round of the Norway Chess tournament in Stavanger on Wednesday, May 29. This win propelled the Indian Grandmaster to the top of the standings in the prestigious six-player open section.
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Praggnanandhaa, playing with the white pieces, overcame the odds to defeat Carlsen on his home turf. With this victory, last year's FIDE World Cup runner-up increased his total to 5.5 out of 9 points by the end of the third round.
American Grandmaster Fabio Caruana secured the second spot after earning three full points from his win over GM Ding Liren on Wednesday. Meanwhile, Praggnanandhaa's sister, R Vaishali, maintained her lead in the women's section of the Norway Chess tournament.
Carlsen, who made a risky opening move against Praggnanandhaa, dropped to fifth place in the six-man standings. Despite the challenging start and trailing on the clock for most of the game, Praggnanandhaa remained composed and clinched three crucial points, marking a significant boost after his World Cup loss to
Carlsen last year. Notably, Praggnanandhaa is only the fourth Indian to defeat Carlsen in classical chess.
In another match, GM Hikaru Nakamura defeated GM Alireza Firouzja in an Armageddon tiebreaker, securing the third spot on the table. GM Ding Liren, who is set to compete for the World Championship title against GM D Gukesh later this year, found himself at the bottom of the standings with 2.5 points out of 9 after three rounds.