NEW DELHI:
R Praggnanandhaa
extended his streak of upsets by defeating world champion
Ding Liren
in the
armageddon game
at the
Norway Chess tournament
on Monday.
This victory followed Praggnanandhaa’s impressive wins in the tournament against higher-ranked players like
Magnus Carlsen
and
Fabiano Caruana
.
Despite managing to draw against Praggnanandhaa in the classical game, Ding Liren faltered in the crucial armageddon game, allowing the young Indian prodigy to claim another high-profile victory.
In another intense match,
Hikaru Nakamura
edged closer to the tournament leader Magnus Carlsen. Nakamura secured his win in an armageddon thriller on time, narrowing the gap to just half a point behind Carlsen.
Fabiano Caruana's match against
Alireza Firouzja
was a roller-coaster of emotions. Caruana’s daring knight sacrifice nearly backfired, but he managed to escape with a draw in the classical game. However, Firouzja dominated the armageddon game, leaving Caruana with no chances for recovery.
In the women’s section, Anna Muzychuk emerged as the sole leader of Women’s Norway
Chess
after achieving a significant milestone. She became the first player to win a mini-match against the Women's World Champion, Ju Wenjun, propelling her to the top of the leaderboard.
R
Vaishali
's aspirations for the title were dealt a significant blow as she suffered a defeat in classical chess to Koneru Humpy. Meanwhile, Lei Tingjie triumphed over Pia Cramling in the armageddon game, adding to the excitement of the tournament.