Praggnanandhaa falls in final hurdle, Carlsen wins World Cup
Indian chess player R Praggnanandhaa lost to Magnus Carlsen in the tie-break final of the FIDE World Cup 1.5-0.5, on Thursday. The tie-break between the two was played after the first two matches ended in draws.
And with this, Carlsen won his first-ever World Cup title, defeating his 18-year-old opponent in 45 moves. Praggnanandhaa, on the other hand, playing with white pieces in the day's first game, made the first move -e4 - and got into a better position.
In the second game, Carlsen began with e4. Faced with a must-win situation in the second game, the Indian teen came under time pressure.
Viswanathan Anand wrote on social media platform 'X' after the final, "Praggnanandhaa can come back with a candidates spot and a truly wonderful result." He congratulated Carlsen and wrote: "In the end, it's Magnus! His persistence is rewarded with a victory in the only tournament that eluded him so far! Congratulations to the #FIDEWorldCup2023 winner Magnus Carlsen!" The Indian teenager's coach R B Ramesh wrote on 'X': Congratulations @MagnusCarlsen for a well deserved World Cup title! Well done @rpragchess! Lots of good memories and some hard lessons as well. Onward !" Praggnanandhaa enjoyed an incredible run in the tournament, having beaten world No.2 Hikaru Nakamura and world No.3 Fabiano Caruana to set up a final date with Carlsen.
Now Praggnanandhaa has also qualified for the Candidates 2024 tournament, which will be held in Canada.