Indian prodigy R Praggnanandhaa could not pull off a repeat of his giant-killing acts of the last few days as fancied Magnus Carlsen beat him 1.50.5 in the tiebreak to win the FIDE World Cup here on Thursday.
For the five-time World Championship winner and Norwegian superstar Carlsen, who has been at the top of the sport for over a decade now, this was his first-ever World Cup title.
What is the price money of FIDE Chess World Cup 2023?
The amount that will be awarded to the winner will be approximately Rs 90,93,551 ($110k), and the second-place finisher will get around Rs 66,13,444 ($80k). The prize pool for the competition is roughly Rs 1,51,392,240, as per reports.
The second 25+10 tie-break game ended in a draw in 22 moves as Carlsen played it safe after he had won the first one, displaying his superior end-game skills. After a keenly contested first game, the second game was a rather tame affair with Praggnanandhaa falling behind quickly and agreeing to a draw.
The two classical games on Tuesday and Wednesday had ended in draws, forcing the final into a tie-break.Praggnanandhaa is the runner-up of the 2023 FIDE World Cup! 🥈
Congratulations to the 18-year-old Indian prodigy on an impressive tournament! 👏On his way to the final, Praggnanandhaa beat, among others, world #2 Hikaru Nakamura and #3 Fabiano Caruana! By winning the silver… pic.twitter.com/zJh9wQv5pS— International Chess Federation (@FIDE_chess) August 24, 2023
Carlsen, who had been under the weather due to food poisoning and did not look at his best in the first classical game, showed why he is so tough to get past with his remarkable comeback in the tie-break.
He overcame a stiff challenge from his 18-year-old Indian opponent in the first tie-break game, winning it in 45 moves. Carlsen then saw off the problems he encountered due to Praggnanandhaa's enterprising play in the middle to turn the tables on the Indians and seize the advantage.
As fortunes swung from one side to the other, the Indians surrendered the point after coming under time pressure in the first rapid game.
FIDE World Cup winner Magnus Carlsen.
📷 by Stev Bonhage pic.twitter.com/cuchTz2AqU— International Chess Federation (@FIDE_chess) August 24, 2023
Carlsen won game 1 in 45 moves and made full use of the advantage of playing with white pieces in the second game. Praggnanandhaa, playing with white in the day's first game, made the first move -e4 - and got into a better position due to some careful maneuvering.
At one point in time, the players were left with their two rooks and minor pieces - two knights for Carlsen and a knight and a light-colored bishop for Praggnanandhaa.
The Indian was under time pressure and resigned after making a mistake, having realised that the game was gone. In the second game, Carlsen began with e4. The first exchange happened when the sport's superstar took a pawn on the eighth move after Praggnanandhaa took a second pawn with the queen.
Faced with a must-win situation in the second game, the Indian teen came under time pressure early and chose to agree to a draw with white (Carlsen) holding the upper hand. Earlier, the two classical games ended in draws that forced a tie-break to decide the World Cup champion.
In the end, it's Magnus! His persistence is rewarded with a victory in the only tournament that eluded him so far! Congratulations to the #FIDEWorldCup2023 winner Magnus Carlsen!
— Viswanathan Anand (@vishy64theking) August 24, 2023
Praggnanandhaa can come back with a candidates spot and a truly wonderful result.@FIDE_chess #FIDEWorldCup2023
— Viswanathan Anand (@vishy64theking) August 24, 2023
Five-time world champion Viswanathan Anand wrote on the social media platform 'X' after the final, "Praggnanandhaa can come back with a candidate spot and a truly wonderful result."
He congratulated Carlsen and wrote: "In the end, it's Magnus! His persistence is rewarded with a victory in the only tournament that eluded him so far! Congratulations to the #FIDEWorldCup2023 winner Magnus Carlsen!"
Congratulations @MagnusCarlsen for a well deserved World Cup title! Well done @rpragchess ! Lots of good memories and some hard lessons as well. Onward !
— Ramesh RB (@Rameshchess) August 24, 2023
The Indian teenager's coach R B Ramesh wrote on 'X': Congratulations @MagnusCarlsen for a well-deserved World Cup title! Well done @rpragchess! Lots of good memories and some hard lessons as well. Onward !"
Praggnanandhaa enjoyed an incredible run in the tournament, having beaten world No.2 Hikaru Nakamura and world No.3 Fabiano Caruana to set up a final date with Carlsen.
(With PTI inputs)
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