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Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa: Indian grandmaster, 16, defeats World No. 1 Magnus Carlsen

Praggnanandhaa received praise for his stunning victory against World Number One Magnus Carlsen in an online tournament

Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa, an Indian teenage chess grandmaster, received praise for his stunning victory against world number one Magnus Carlsen in an online tournament. At the ‘Airthings Masters’ fast chess competition on Monday, February 21, Praggnanandhaa, 16, who became the youngest International Master in history at the age of ten in 2016, defeated Carlsen in 39 moves. He played with black pieces in a Tarrasch variation to halt Carlsen’s run of three straight wins.

"It's about time to go to bed as I don't think I will have dinner at 2.30 in the morning," the 16-year-old stated shortly after the historic triumph when asked about his plans for the celebration. After Viswanathan Anand and Pentala Harikrishna, the 16-year-old Grandmaster from Chennai is only the third Indian to defeat Magnus Carlsen. At the age of seven, he won the 'FIDE Master' title, which is an open title between Grandmaster and International Master. In 2013, Praggnanandhaa won the World Youth Chess Championship Under-8, at eight years old. 

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His winning streak continued in 2016 when he became the world's youngest International Master at the age of 10. After Russian chess champion Sergey Karjakin, Praggnanandhaa became the youngest 'Grandmaster' two years later, at the age of 12. As of now, he is the fifth-youngest person to acquire the title, after Abhimanyu Mishra, Gukesh D, Sergey Karjakin, and Javokhir Sindarovt.

According to ESPN, Praggnanadhaa has totally avoided social media as, according to his coach RB Ramesh, this helps him relieve the stress of being judged. RB Ramesh told ESPN, “The burden of expectation can get to him at times. When he loses, it sometimes affects him more than it should. He's working on it, but he's just 16 and I'm really glad at how he's handled himself against some of the top guys." 

Celebrities from all walks of life congratulated the youngster on his remarkable victory. Praggnanandhaa's inspiration, Viswanathan Anand, five-time world champion and India's first Grandmaster, congratulated Praggnanandhaa in a tweet saying, "welcome to the club & congrats Praggnanandhaa!! See u soon in chennai?" Sachin Tendulkar, an Indian cricket star, also congratulated the chess champion on Twitter saying, "what a wonderful feeling it must be for Pragg. All of 16, and to have beaten the experienced & decorated Magnus Carlsen, and that too while playing black, is magical! Best wishes on a long & successful chess career ahead. You’ve made India proud!" Soon after, Praggnanandhaa expressed his thanks and said being congratulated by Tendulkar meant a lot to him.