CHENNAI, Feb 21: Teenaged Indian Grandmaster R Praggnanandhaa stunned world no.1 Magnus Carlsen in the eighth round of the Airthings Masters online rapid chess tournament, becoming only the third from the country to clinch a victory over the Norwegian superstar.
The 16-year old prodigy was hailed by many on social media, including cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar and All-India Chess Federation president Sanjay Kapoor, after he followed five-time former world champion Viswanathan Anand and P Harikrishna in getting the better of the 31-year-old Carlsen, who is also the reigning world champion.
Praggnanandhaa won with black pieces in 39 moves in a Tarrasch variation game early on Monday to halt Carlsen’s run of three straight wins.
“I am delighted to have beaten Carlsen. It will give me a lot of confidence for the rest of the tournament and future also,” he told PTI over phone.
For someone, who brought down the best chess player on the planet, Praggnanandhaa was not celebrating big just yet and said he wanted to stay focussed on the rest of the tournament. “I have to focus on the upcoming matches. After the match I just wanted to rest,” he said with a smile.
The Indian GM lies in joint 12th spot after eight rounds with eight points.
In the Airthings Masters, a 16-player online rapid tournament, a player gets three points for a win and one for a draw in the preliminary rounds. Seven more rounds remain in the preliminary phase. (PTI)
