R Praggnanandhaa Shocks Magnus Carlsen in Freestyle Grand Slam Chess Event at Las Vegas, Knocks Norwegian Out of The Tournament

Indian chess grandmaster R Praggnanandhaa registered a shocking win in the Freestyle Grand Slam event at Las Vegas as he beat the man considered the finest chess player in the world right now in Magnus Carlsen, therefore indirectly leading to his shock elimination from the tournament in the process. 

The youngster nicknamed Pragg was playing with the white pieces and put in a dominant display to beat the Norwegian, a statement win against the man who is up there in terms of Greatest of All Time i.e. GOAT conversations in the sport of chess. 

The loss to Praggnanandhaa also indirectly led to Carlsen being eliminated - he also lost to Wesley So in the group stage and then couldn’t beat Levon Aronian in the tiebreaker for fourth place. 

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Indian Chess Dominates in Las Vegas

But it wasn't just Pragg who was able to showcase his best in the tournament, as fellow Indian grandmaster Arjun Erigaisi also put in a strong showing and made it to the knockouts. 

Carlsen was always going to be seen as one of the favourites given his stature and stronger focus on rapid and freestyle chess, but his elimination has opened the door for a shock winner. 

However, the Indians will still have to contend with strong contenders in the form of Hikaru Nakamura and Hans Niemann. 

Vidit Gujrathi was unable to join his compatriots in the knockouts and had a tournament to forget, finishing rock bottom of his group. 

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Can Pragg Continue Momentum From UzChess Cup?

But all eyes will be on Pragg, who also won the UzChess Cup Masters 2025 when he defeated Nodirbek Abdusattorov in the final. 

That win made him the top-ranked chess player in India, which is no mean feat when you consider how many Indian grandmasters now compete for titles at the top level. 

Pragg dethroned Arjun Erigaisi to become India's new top-ranked chess player and also stands a spot above the reigning chess world champion D Gukesh, who is ranked at number five. 

Now it will be interesting to see if Pragg can continue his stellar run in 2025 and add another title to his ever-growing collection.