The whole of India will be cheering for R Praggnanandhaa to cross the one last hurdle against the World No 1 Magnus Carlsen in the final of the Chess World Cup 2023. The final is being played in two Games. In Game 1, played on Tuesday (August 22), Praggnanandhaa showed massive fight and drew the match after 35 moves, while playing with the white pieces. Carlsen who is not in the best physical state said that he will hope to be in better state of mind after some rest ahead of Game 2.
Carlsen, who is suffering from food poisoning and has not had proper food in last 2 days, said that the 18-year-old Indian will try to push hard in Game 2.
On the other hand, Praggnanandhaa said that he does not think he was in any trouble during Game 1 and that he had the chance to finish the game at one stage. Praggnanandhaa said later in an interaction posted on the 'X' (formerly Twitter) handle of FIDE: "Rb8, I felt I should have done something there. But maybe this position is just solid and I don't have anything. What I played there was not the best try but I could not find anything."
Magnus Carlsen: "Normally, I would just probably have a bit of an advantage having a rest day while he had to play a tough tiebreak yesterday, but I've been in a pretty rough shape the last couple of days. I got some food poisoning after the game against Abasov. I haven't been_ pic.twitter.com/e1Io9I4EFI
— International Chess Federation (@FIDE_chess) August 22, 2023
Praggnanandhaa was born on August 10 in 2005, in Chennai. He started playing chess at just 2 after taking inspiration from his elder sister Vaishali. He became a Grandmaster in 2018 and an international master in 2021. When he was just 10 years, he had become won the title of international chess master, the youngest ever to do so. The Indian teenager is only the second player from India to reach the final of the world cup after the legendary Viswanathan Anand and qualified for the Candidates tournament in 2024.
The R Praggnanandhaa vs Magnus Carlsen, Chess World Cup Final Day 2 will be played on Wednesday, August 23.
The R Praggnanandhaa vs Magnus Carlsen, Chess World Cup Final Day 2 will be played in Baku, Azerbaijan.
The R Praggnanandhaa vs Magnus Carlsen, Chess World Cup Final Day 2 will start at 4:30 PM IST.
The R Praggnanandhaa vs Magnus Carlsen, Chess World Cup Final Day 2 will not be broadcast on TV.
The R Praggnanandhaa vs Magnus Carlsen, Chess World Cup Final Day 2 will be streamed live on Fide Chess' YouTube and Twitch channels.
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