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On Tuesday, June 4, the Indian grandmaster, Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa, suffered a defeat against Magnus Carlsen in an intense armageddon game during the Norway Chess 2024 in Stavanger. This victory was much needed for the Norwegian against Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa after losing to him in classical chess for the first-time in his career earlier in the tournament.
The battle in the classical game between Magnus Carlsen and Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa was a pulsating one, which went on until 75 moves. Carlsen put the pressure on Praggnanandhaa with the white pieces, but the Indian managed to hold on to a draw in an Open Ruy Lopez game.
The tie went to the armageddon game wherein Magnus Carlsen got the better of Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa with the white pieces despite the fact that the Indian came quite close to equalising the position at one point. Hikaru Nakamura called the win for Magnus Carlsen “a beautiful masterpiece” wherein the fans got to see a good knight vs bad bishop endgame.
Meanwhile, Hikaru Nakamura was in a massive tussle with Alireza Firouzja in classical chess, which he couldn’t manage to find a way to win. In the armageddon game, Firouzja brought his A-game to defeat Nakamura, to stay in fourth place in the Norway Chess 2024 standings with 11 points.
Magnus Carlsen leads the tournament standings with 14.5 points, a point ahead of Hikaru Nakamura. Meanwhile, Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa is in third place with 12 points.
