The Norway Chess tournament witnessed a dramatic turn of events on Thursday, with 18-year-old Indian prodigy R Praggnanandhaa losing his lead after a hard-fought defeat to World No. 3 Hikaru Nakamura.
R Praggnanandhaa falls short
A day after his sensational victory over Magnus Carlsen, Praggnanandhaa put up a valiant effort against Hikaru Nakamura. However, despite his determined defense, he eventually succumbed to a checkmate after 86 moves.
The young Indian’s disappointment was evident as he clutched his forehead after making the decisive move.
Nakamura’s Confessional Visits and Praggnanandhaa’s Missed Opportunity
Adding to the intrigue, Hikaru Nakamura made frequent visits to the “confessional booth” set up by the tournament organizers. During one such visit, he confessed to feeling “bored” due to his opponents’ lengthy thinking times. He even expressed a preference for streaming over playing the game.
Meanwhile, R Praggnanandhaa’s own visit to the confessional booth proved to be his realisation of a missed opportunity. While explaining his opponent’s line, he told how he stumbled upon the crucial move 28.Rf1!, which he had overlooked earlier.
Magnus Carlsen remains World No. 1
In the other significant match of the day, Magnus Carlsen managed to hold onto his world No. 1 ranking with a victory over Fabiano Caruana.
Caruana’s blundering move ultimately sealed his fate, despite Nakamura’s earlier prediction of a potentially history-making upset.
Ding Liren struggles continue
Reigning World Champion Ding Liren’s woes deepened as he suffered a heavy defeat to Alireza Firouzja. This loss, coupled with his Round 3 defeat, has pushed him down the rankings, making him the second-ranked Chinese player behind Wei Yi.
Norway Chess resumes on Saturday
The Norway Chess tournament takes a two-day break before resuming with Round 5 on Saturday, June 1st. While Praggnanandhaa’s lead has vanished, the remaining rounds promise to be filled with exciting chess battles.
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