2 days ago
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R. Praggnanandhaa... the sanction is simply a tongue-twister nary more. The chess satellite and fans person gotten utilized to it arsenic the Indian Grandmaster conscionable keeps winning titles and accolades. Beating Magnus Carlsen to the rubric successful his ain backyard successful a tourney which helium has dominated is nary mean feat and helium did it successful style, winning 4 classical games successful a enactment to tempest to the top.
“... Winning this is much peculiar and Magnus was there. Also winning 4 successful a row,” Pragg to his chap players and fans, told the Indian media aft beating German’s Vincent Keymer successful the 10th and last circular to registry a historical maiden triumph successful Norway Chess 2026 astatine Deichman Bjorvika connected Friday night.
It whitethorn oregon whitethorn not beryllium the biggest rubric of his vocation frankincense far, but his history-making triumph was a hugely fashionable one. He was swarmed by fans but managed to delight them with autographs and pictures.
Carlsen was effusive successful praise of the champion and said, “he won the past 4 classical games. That’s arsenic clutch arsenic it gets. Pragg is an unthinkable combatant and it is amusive to spot him get rewarded for that.” The World No.1 mislaid some his classical games to the Indian GM.
Asked what was the crushed for the turnaround aft 2 losses successful the mediate of the tourney and being relegated to past spot successful the leaderboard, Praggnanandhaa, the archetypal Indian to triumph Norway Chess, said, “I don’t deliberation determination is thing peculiar I changed. But this conscious effort of playing faster surely helped successful my games. I had much clip than my hostile successful astir of the games.”
Going into the last circular lucifer against Keymer, helium needed a fewer things to spell his mode to instrumentality the apical prize. He had to not lone triumph but the effect of overnight person Wesley So’s crippled Alireza Firoujza held the key.
“I was not definite it would spell my way. I inactive had to bash it. I can’t truly accidental 1 circumstantial crippled but winning the tourney wide is much peculiar for me,” helium said erstwhile asked which lucifer helium thought was his champion successful the event.
With his mother, who is simply a changeless beingness whenever helium and his sister R. Vaishali play not around, Praggnanandhaa said she had told him earlier the lucifer against Firouzja “she was telling me, ‘It’s a caller month. You’ll play well.”
(The writer is successful Oslo astatine the invitation of Norway Chess.)
