Meet R Praggnanandhaa, Indian chess prodigy to take on No 1 Magnus Carlsen in FIDE World Cup final today
Millions of Indians on Tuesday will be cheering for teen chess prodigy Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa, fondly known as Pragg as he takes on five-time world champion Magnus Carlsen for World No.1 title on Tuesday at FIDE World Cup in Baku, Azerbaijan.
Praggnanandhaa defeated World No. 3 Fabiano Caruana and stormed into the final of the FIDE World Cup.
Several political leaders and sports celebrities are supporting the 18-year-old teen for making India proud at the chess world cup.
ABOUT R PRAGGNANANDHAA
Born and raised in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, Praggnanandhaa took an interest in Chess after his older sister, Vaishali, started playing at age 6. At the time, he was just 2 years old.
Vaishali later became a grandmaster in 2018 and an international master in 2021.
Simultaneously, Praggnanandhaa was given many opportunities to hone his craft, notably at the Bloom Chess Academy, where he says he “learned a lot.”
When Pragg was 6, he bagged second rank in the under-7 Indian championships before winning gold at the Asian Championships, then went on to win the World Youth Chess Championships for under-8s and under-10s.
In 2016, Praggnanandhaa created history after winning his ninth-round game at the KIIT International Chess Festival in Bhubaneswar, Odisha.
At the age of 10 years, 10 months, and 19 days, he became an international chess master – the youngest ever.
Yesterday, Praggnanandhaa managed to beat Fabiano Caruana 3.5-2.5 after tiebreaks.
WISHES POUR FOR PRAGGNANANDHAA
Congress MP Rahul Gandhi congratulated Indian Grandmaster for reaching the final of the FIDE World Cup and extended his best wishes for the title match against Magnus Carlsen.
“Congratulations to R Praggnanandhaa for an outstanding FIDE Chess World Cup journey to the Finals. My best wishes for the title match against Magnus Carlsen. More than a billion Indians are cheering for you,” the Congress leader posted on ‘X’ (formerly Twitter).
Union Minister Jyotiraditya M Scindia also congratulated Praggnanandhaa on the X. Scindia wrote, “Heartiest congratulations and best of luck to India’s young genius Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa as he advances to the finals of FIDE World Cup 2023”.
Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik wrote, “Congratulate young Indian Grandmaster R #Praggnanandhaa on the stunning victory over World No. 3 Fabiano Caruana in the semi-finals of #FIDEWorldCup Chess Tournament. Best wishes for the final match against reigning world champion Magnum Carlsen”.
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Updated: 22 Aug 2023, 11:32 AM IST
