• R Praggnanandhaa scripts history beats world number one Magnus Carlsen in classical chess for first time

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    R Praggnanandhaa scripts history beats world number one Magnus Carlsen in classical chess for first time

    Classical chess, characterized by longer time limits for moves, saw Praggnanandhaa and Carlsen previously drawing their encounters in this format.

    Digital Desk: In the Norway Chess tournament, Indian Grandmaster R Praggnanandhaa secured his first-ever classical chess victory against world number one Magnus Carlsen, propelling him to the top of the leaderboard. With 5.5 points after three rounds, the 18-year-old Indian claimed the leader's position, playing with the white pieces and relegating the home favorite Carlsen to fifth place.

    Classical chess, characterized by longer time limits for moves, saw Praggnanandhaa and Carlsen previously drawing their encounters in this format. Meanwhile, Praggnanandhaa's sister R Vaishali led the women's competition with 5.5 points, having drawn her game against Anna Muzychuk.

    In other matches, Fabiano Caruana of the USA ranked second in the world, defeated reigning world champion Ding Liren of China, who consequently fell to the bottom of the standings. American player Hikaru Nakamura clinched victory in his Armageddon game against Alireza Firouzja of France, earning an additional half-point and securing third place overall. Nakamura is set to face off against Praggnanandhaa in the fourth round.