India’s teen chess star R Praggnanandhaa struck a knockout blow against world number one Magnus Carlsen in Round 4 of the Freestyle Chess Grand Slam Tour at the upscale Wynn Las Vegas. The 19-year-old outplayed the five-time world champion in 39 moves, adding a remarkable victory to his achievements.

Pragg’s Perfect Hat-Trick Against Carlsen

Praggnanandhaa’s victory over Carlsen in the rapid time control (10 minutes + 10-second increment) implies that the Indian chess player has now beaten the Norwegian legend in all three major formats – Classical, Rapid, and Blitz. With this win, the Indian youngster now shares the top position in Group White with 4.5/7, tied with Uzbekistan’s Nodirbek Abdusattorov and Javokhir Sindarov.

Carlsen Knocked To Lower Bracket After Bumpy Ride

Carlsen started the tournament with consecutive victories but lost momentum shortly after. Defeat at the hands of Praggnanandhaa and Wesley So, and subsequently two draws, left him fighting for a playoff position. Though he secured his last-round victory over Bibisara Assaubayeva, he was defeated in the tiebreak games by Armenia’s Levon Aronian, denying him a top-four spot in his group.

The loss means Carlsen will now play in the lower bracket, his best possible result limited to third place.

Knockout Stage Set to Heat Up

The first day of the tournament saw two round-robin groups of eight players each, with the top four from each qualifying for the main knockout bracket. The other players, such as Carlsen and Germany’s Vincent Keymer, now join the placement bracket in which they’ll fight for ranking and prize money, but no longer the title.

$200,000 Prize Awaits the Winner

The quarterfinals begin on Thursday. From there, losers among players in the upper bracket fall into the lower bracket to have another chance. The way to the championship, however, gets narrower, as the battle for the USD 200,000 first prize becomes more heated.