Indian Grandmaster Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa defeated world number one Magnus Carlsen in Round 4 of the Las Vegas Chess Grand Slam Tour. This win is widely regarded as one of the tournament’s highlights. Praggnanandhaa won the game in 39 moves, demonstrating good preparation and composure under rapid time constraints of 10 minutes with a 10-second increment per move.
According to reports, the 19-year-old has been consistent in Group A, also known as Group White, winning three consecutive games from Rounds 2 to 4. He leads Group A with Nodirbek Abdusattorov and Javokhir Sindarov, who each have 4.5 points. His record in the group includes wins over Bibisara Assaubayeva and Vincent Keymer, along with a draw with Abdusattorov.
Carlsen collected 1.5 points in his final two games, tying for fourth place and forcing a tiebreak with Levon Aronian to secure a quarterfinal spot. However, Aronian defeated Carlsen 2-0 in the tiebreak, advancing to the knockout stage and sending Carlsen to the lower bracket.
Praggnanandhaa will now face Abdusattorov, Sindarov, and Aronian in the quarterfinals, with Hikaru Nakamura, Hans Niemann, Arjun Erigaisi, and Fabiano Caruana in Group B.
