All you need to know about the prodigy who took chess world by storm – R Praggnanandhaa

Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa, the rising star of Indian chess, has garnered significant attention by becoming the second Indian, following Viswanathan Anand, to advance to the World Chess Final. Currently standing at a 1-1 draw in the 2023 final, Praggnanandhaa, nicknamed Praggu, has compelled the World No. 1, Magnus Carlsen, into a tie-breaker round.

Praggnanandhaa achieved another milestone by becoming the youngest Indian grandmaster in 2018, accomplishing this feat at the age of 12. Here are five key aspects to familiarize oneself with about this remarkable Indian chess champion:

Born on August 10, 2005, in Chennai to Rameshbabu and Nagalaxmi, Praggnanandhaa is also the younger sibling of Vaishali, a fellow chess player who has secured the title of youth champion twice.

Praggnanandhaa’s journey into chess commenced when he observed his sister’s engagement with the game. His initial triumph emerged in 2013 when he clinched victory at the Under-8 World Youth Chess Championship, an accomplishment he achieved at the age of 7. This victory earned him the FIDE Master title. He repeated this triumph in 2015 within the U-10 category.

International accolades soon followed for Praggnanandhaa. In 2016, he became the Youngest International Master at the age of 10 years, 10 months, and 19 days. The subsequent year, in 2017, he secured his first Grandmaster Norm at the World Junior Chess Championship.

His most significant achievement transpired in 2018, as he became the second youngest Grandmaster globally, attaining this prestigious distinction at the age of 12 years, 10 months, and 13 days. This remarkable feat was accomplished at the Gredine Open in Italy, where he triumphed over Luco Moroni.

Praggnanandhaa’s trajectory of success extended to besting Magnus Carlsen, the reigning World Champion, in 2022 during the online Airthings Masters. This achievement positioned him among an elite group, comprising only Viswanathan Anand and Pentala Harikrishna, as the third Indian to conquer the World Champion.

Moreover, at the age of 18, Praggnanandhaa secured a place in the FIDE World Cup final by prevailing over world No. 3 Fabiano Caruana in a tie-breaker round. This accomplishment made him only the second Indian, after Viswanathan Anand, to attain this distinguished position.