Praggnanandhaa beats world number one Carlsen in freestyle chess, loses semifinal at Las Vegas despite his heroics

LAS VEGAS: Indian Grandmaster R Praggnanandhaa defeated world number one Magnus Carlsen in the first game of their freestyle chess match at the Freestyle Chess Grand Slam in Las Vegas.

According to Chess.com, the 19-year-old Indian chess prodigy beat Carlsen 1-0 in the opening game, playing with the white pieces.

BREAKING: GM Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu defeated Magnus Carlsen again in their #FreestyleChess match! pic.twitter.com/HbfqX4O6vh

— Chess.com – India (@chesscom_in) July 19, 2025

However, Carlsen bounced back in the second game to level the match and then went on to win both games in the blitz tiebreak, sealing a 2-0 victory and advancing to the final.

During game one, Praggnanandhaa took down Carlsen with white pieces.

But the game two was won by the world number one, taking things to a tiebreak. Carslen went on to win the blitz tiebreak 2-0 to win the semifinal match.

Earlier, Praggnanandhaa secured a stunning victory over Carlsen in a dominant Round 4 clash at the Las Vegas Chess Grand Slam Tour.

Praggnanandhaa was the most consistent player in group A. He scored three straight wins from rounds two to four, the latter of which was a gritty win over the pre-tournament favorite Carlsen, according to Chess.com.

The 19-year-old defeated the Norwegian master in only 39 moves in the match held on Wednesday, confirming his increasing position on the international chess scene and continuing a worrying trend for Carlsen against India’s new generation of stars.

With a 10-minute plus 10-second increase in each round, Praggnanandhaa outplayed Carlsen with a poise and assurance that is seldom seen against the five-time world champion. (ANI)