Norway Chess 2026: After Carlsen, Praggnanandhaa beats Gukesh to go second

Indian Grandmaster R Praggnanandhaa continued his stunning run at Norway Chess 2026 by defeating reigning World Champion D Gukesh in Round 9, completing a hat-trick of victories and moving into second place on 15 points. The win keeps him firmly in contention for the title heading into the final rounds of the elite tournament.

The result further tightens the race at the top of the standings, with Praggnanandhaa now just half a point behind leader Wesley So and ahead of several of the world’s strongest players.

“Quite proud about this game honestly, because this is how I usually lose to him. He does some weird creative stuff. I end up overthinking and somehow doing something myself and losing. I thought I managed my time well and I was also calculating well. So I thought it was a good game overall,” Praggnanandhaa said after his win over Gukesh on Norway Chess’ official broadcast.

The 20-year-old’s turnaround has been one of the defining stories of the tournament. After back-to-back defeats earlier in the event, including a loss to Gukesh and Wesley So, Praggnanandhaa responded with three consecutive classical wins, defeating top-ranked opposition including Magnus Carlsen and Alireza Firouzja along the way.

“I’m more happy that I’m still in the race because three days back I was fighting for the last spot. And now I have a chance at fighting. So I’ll take it,” he added.

PRAGG’S RESURGENCE SHAKES UP TITLE RACE

Praggnanandhaa’s recovery has reshaped the leaderboard, with the Indian GM now emerging as a genuine title contender after briefly being near the bottom of the standings. His improved time management and consistency in conversion have been key factors behind the turnaround, as acknowledged by the player himself.

“I don’t know. I didn’t do anything specific,” he said. “I felt I played well in this tournament. There were couple of positions I could have probably even the game against Gukesh, when I was playing with white, I was just winning, I outplayed him and then I messed up in time trouble.”

While Praggnanandhaa, Wesley So and Alireza Firouzja remain in the title fight, defending World Champion Gukesh and Magnus Carlsen are now battling to finish strongly and avoid ending the tournament at the bottom end of the standings.

“So there were few games where I could have converted and could have had more points. I thought I was playing well. I just had to try and keep some time in reserve,” he continued.

The momentum shift has set up a dramatic final round scenario, with multiple players still in contention and minimal separation at the top of the table.

In the women’s section, Kazakhstan’s Bibisara Assaubayeva secured the title with a round to spare after drawing with veteran Ukrainian Grandmaster Anna Muzychuk, a result that took her unassailable lead to 16.5 points.

Indian Grandmasters Divya Deshmukh and Koneru Humpy currently occupy the bottom two positions in the standings, with Deshmukh slipping down the table after back-to-back Classical defeats, including a loss to China’s Zhu Jiner on Thursday, June 4.

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