After 16-year-old Rameshappu Pragnananda claimed a stunning victory in the Elite Speed Chess Championship from his computer in India on Monday, there was no hand of his fellow competitors to shake hands or catch the cameras to capture the moment.
The man he had just defeated, world champion Norwegian Magnus Carlsen, was healing the wounds of his horrific loss somewhere off the internet.
And in Chennai, where Praggnanandhaa lives, it was around three in the morning
He texts his coach and wakes up his father to tell them the victory. Bragnananda – also known as Bragg – became the youngest person to defeat Carlsen, aged 31, since becoming world champion in 2013. While his defeat of Carlsen, who was struggling from the after-effects of the COVID-19 infection, does not affect the federation title International Chess Federation, it has astonished the world of chess and delighted the people of India.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday congratulated the “young genius” on his victory on Twitter. “I wish the talented Praggnanandhaa success in his future endeavours,” wrote Mr. Modi.
Sachin Tendulkar, retired Indian cricket star He is considered one of the greatest players in the history of sports, as he congratulated Pragnanandha on Twitter He described his victory as “magical”.
“You made India proud!” Tendulkar said.
Praggnanandhaa staged his defeat of Carlsen in 39 moves. It was even more awesome because he was playing with the black pieces, moving in second place, with the flaws involved, especially in elite chess.
“He was in control of the game, I felt, from start to finish, which is what Magnus does to people,” said Levi Rosman, an international professor who summarizes tournaments and discusses strategy on his YouTube channel. gotham chesswhich has more than 1.4 million subscribers.
Carlsen, who was also a standout player when he was a teenager, unlocked by the queen’s maneuver, moving his queen’s pawn to d4. Praggnanandhaa refused the maneuver. (Replay in Chess24.)
In the first and middle stages of the game, Carlsen said, he played a minute game and managed to get a pawn, then another, which put him at an advantage, but Praggnanandhaa made up for this by keeping the pieces he still had on the board active and crowded. King Carlsen.
“He used what was left on the board to launch a devastating counterattack,” Rosman said.
The game turned definitively at move 32, when Carlsen moved his jockey which was later deemed a foul. The decision prompted David Howell, a senior British professor and commentator on the chess broadcasting platform Chess 24to ask, “Is this smart, or is this crazy?”
Soon the answer was clear. Praggnanandhaa quickened his pace and Carlsen looked visibly frustrated. Seven motions and about 10 minutes later, it’s over.
After Praggnanandhaa wins, Kaja Sennar, suspended in Chess24, Requested How will he celebrate?
“I think it’s just about going to bed, because I don’t think I’ll have dinner at 2:30 in the morning,” said Pragnananda.
It was indeed a wonderful night for Praggnanandhaa. He also defeated Levon Aronian fourth highest A player ranked in the date, at the start of the competition day.
Praggnanandhaa said he prepared for a tough tournament schedule by staying up late in the days leading up to it. “I’m still tired, but it’s okay,” he told Chess24.
However, his early success did not hold up during the competition. Bragnananda failed to qualify for the quarter-finals of the Earthlings Masters, which began on Wednesday, and reduced the group to eight players, from 16.
Carlsen is still in competition, which he said has been more difficult due to persistent symptoms from the recent Covid-19 infection.
“It was a little bit better today,” Carlsen told Chess24. on Monday”But for the first two days I felt like I was fine, but didn’t have the energy, which made it hard to focus because every time I tried to think, I was wrong.”
This wasn’t the first time Carlsen had played Praggnanandhaa, who became the youngest-ever international teacher when he was ten and became a senior manager at twelve.
Carlsen defeated Prajnanandha in January, a month after the I.F. invited Prajnanandha to Take the first festive step In the world championship match between Carlsen and Ian Nepomnyashchi, the chief of Russia. Carlsen won his fifth consecutive world championship at that tournament.
After Praggnanandhaa defeated Carlsen this week, he said india times He has received congratulatory messages from all over the world, which helps him understand the significance of what he has accomplished.
“When I was a kid playing sports, I looked up to Magnus,” Bragnananda said. “I can always come back to this game and look for confidence whenever I need one in the future.”
