A 16-year-old Indian chess player defeated the world champion, Magnus Carlsen. He won the World Youth Chess Championship at the age of seven. Then at the age of nine, he won the Under-10 title. Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa comes from Tamil Nadu.
He is the fifth-youngest chess player in the world to become a Grandmaster. He got the status of Grandmaster in the year 2018. Then his age was 12 years 10 months and 13 days.
He is only the third Indian chess player to defeat Magnus Carlsen. Before him, only Viswanathan Anand and P. Harikrishna could do this feat and the fifth-youngest person after Abhimanyu Mishra, Gukesh D, Sergey Karjakin, and Javokhir Sindarovt to achieve the title of Grandmaster.
Index of Contents
Biography
| Full name | Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa |
| Other names | Prajnananda Ramesh Babu |
| Nickname | Praggu |
| Popular as | Grandmaster R. Praggnanandhaa |
| Profession | Chess player |
| FIDE Title | 1. Grandmaster (GM) – 2nd quarter Presidential Board Meeting 2018, July 8-11, Bucharest, ROU 2. International Master (IM) – 87th FIDE Congress 2016, 1-14 September, Baku, Azerbaijan |
| Federation | INDIA |
| World rank (Active) | 193 |
| FIDE rating | 2612 (February 2022) |
| Peak/bullet rating | 2618 (October 2021) |
| Rapid rating | 1927 |
| Blitz rating | 2599 |
| Coach | R. B. Ramesh |
| Born | 10 August 2005 |
| Age | 16 years |
| Hometown | Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India |
| Religion | Hinduism |
| Zodiac sign | Leo |
| Language | Telugu, English |
| Ethnicity | Tamilian, Indian |
| Nationality | INDIAN |
In the eighth round of the Airthings Master, the first tournament of the Champion Chess Tour 2022, Indian Grandmaster R. Praggnanandhaa defeated world champion, Magnus Carlsen, in a big upset.
In this match of the Online Rapid Chess Competition, 16-year-old Praggnanandhaa played a brilliant game and registered his first win against Carlsen.
After the victory, he said, “I think now is the time to sleep comfortably.” Carlsen’s performance in the tournament is very poor. He remains in fifth place. Russia’s Ian is at number one.
After losing three games in a row, India’s 16-year-old Grandmaster R. Praggnanandhaa stunned world number one Magnus Carlsen of Norway in the eighth round of the Airthings Master Rapid Online Chess tournament on Monday.
The fifth-youngest ever to win the Grandmaster title, Praggnanandhaa, playing with black pieces against 31-year-old Carlsen, won 39 moves in the Terrash variation game.
The experienced Carlsen, despite his best efforts, missed out on winning his third consecutive match in this tournament.
Physique
| Height | 4’6” Feet |
| Weight | 45 Kgs |
| Eye color | Black |
| Hair color | Black |
| Skin complexion | Dark brown |
12th place after eight rounds
The Indian, who won the 2013 World Youth Chess Championship Under-8 title, which earned him the FIDE Master title of the same year, is currently ranked 12th after eight rounds.
Following Carlsen’s success, Praggnanandhaa played two draws in the tournament, losing four matches.
Performance
Praggnanandhaa earlier drew with Le Quang Liem of Vietnam in the first round and lost to Canada’s Eric Hansen, Chinese Ding Liren, and Poland’s Jan-Krzysztof Duda.
On Monday 21-Feb-2022, he played a draw against Dutch player Anish Giri and lost to Shakhriyar Mamedyarov of Azerbaijan.
Ian at the top: Ian Nepomniachtchi of Russia is at the top with 19 points. The Airthings Masters has an online rapid format of 16 players, where the winner gets three points.
Chess career
Praggnanandhaa has had a stellar career so far. He is the fifth-youngest Grandmaster. Before him, Abhimanyu Mishra, Sergey Karjakin, Gukesh D, and Javokhir Sindarov have also achieved this title.
In 2015, he became the under-10 world champion. In 2016, he became the youngest International Master in history at the age of 10 years 10 months and 19 days.
He received the title of Grandmaster for the first time since the 2017 World Junior Chess Championship. Last year he won the Polgar Challenge.
Family
Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa, son of Rameshbabu and Nagalakshmi. Rameshbabu is a branch manager at Tamil Nadu State Corporation Bank and Nagalakshmi is a homemaker. He is the sibling of noted Indian chess player Vaishali Rameshbabu (elder sister).
Honor
Prime Minister of India:
Grandmaster R.Praggnanandhaa met the Vice President, Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu in Chennai and sought his blessings:
Cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar took to Twitter to congratulate the chess champion Praggnanandhaa:
News and Updates
Oslo Esports Cup
Day 1
1st Round
Praggnanandhaa’s impressive First Round match win over Jorden van Foreest leaves him out in front as the only player with the maximum of 6 tournament points.
Oslo Esports Cup
Day 2
2nd Round
Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa wins in the Second Round after a stunning win over world number 10 Shakrhiyar Mamedyarov.
Oslo Esports Cup
Day 3
3rd Round
Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa Beats Vietnam’s Liem Quang Le in the Third Round. Rameshbabu is the only player with 9/9 points and has won the maximum USD 22,500 prize so far after crushing Liem Quang Le of Vietnam with a game to spare.
Oslo Esports Cup
Day 4
4th Round
Praggnanandhaa won three matches but in his duel against Magnus Carlsen in round four he did not find his rhythm, and Carlsen outplayed his opponent in all three games to win the match 3-0. After four rounds Carlsen and Pragg now both have 9.0/12 and share the lead in the tournament.
Norway Chess Open Tournament
11 June 2022
Norway Chess Open Tournamen
Young Indian Grandmaster Ramesh Babu Praggnanandhaa emerged winner in the Norway Chess Open Tournament.
Chess World Cup 2023
22 July 2023
Reach the final of the Chess World Cup
Grandmaster R Praggnanandhaa has become the first Indian in 21 years to reach the Chess World Cup final, showcasing his exceptional skills and India’s rising presence in international chess. His achievement is an inspiration for aspiring players worldwide.
Chess World Cup 2023
25 August 2023
Praggnanandhaa secures Runner-Up at 2023 FIDE World Cup!
Incredible performance by the 18-year-old Indian talent. He conquered top players like #2 Hikaru Nakamura and #3 Fabiano Caruana en route to the finals. Silver medal also earns him a spot in FIDE Candidates.
You makes us feel proud!
Wow… you did it Ramesh!