R Praggnanandhaa beats chess world champion Ding Liren to become India No 1

India’s teenage chess sensation R Praggnanandhaa earned an epic victory against reigning world champion Ding Liren from China in the fourth round of the 2024 Tata Steel Chess Tournament in Wijk aan Zee, Netherlands.

With this victory, the Indian prodigy surpassed five-time world champion Viswanathan Anand to emerge as the country’s top-ranked chess player. This was the first time that Praggnanandhaa claimed the top spot. He also became just the second Indian player after Anand to get the better of a defending world champion in the classical chess format.

As per FIDE’s live ratings, Praggnanandhaa currently has a rating of 2748.3. Anand, on the other hand, is standing with rating points of 2748.

Calling it a “strange game,” Praggnanandhaa shared his feelings during an interaction with Chess.com. “I felt I equalized very easily and then somehow things started to go wrong for him. Even after I won the pawn I felt it should be holdable,” he said.

At Wijk aan Zee this time, Praggnanandhaa secured his first win having defeated Ding. Earlier, the Indian Grandmaster had claimed three draws at the Tata Steel chess event in 2024. The Chennai-born had previously defeated Ding at the same event while playing with black pieces in January last year. Ding was the World No 2 then. Praggnanandhaa also played with black pieces and claimed a remarkable victory.

Last year, Praggnanandhaa became the youngest silver medallist at the FIDE World Cup. Following this sensational achievement, Praggnanandhaa was felicitated by Sports Minister Anurag Thakur at his residence.

“Very happy that we are getting this support (from the government). In many other countries, players don’t get the support. It (support) is very essential. I’m very happy that chess is growing. As a fan of the sport, I’m happy to see that it’s getting more and more popular,” Praggnanandhaa said back then.

“They are my main pillars of support, without them I don’t think me standing here would have been possible and I’m very happy that they are being recognised now because their efforts much bigger,” he added.

Meanwhile, GM Anish Giri is the sole leader in the Masters group of the 2024 Tata Steel Chess Tournament, prior to the first rest day. Anish won in the endgame against GM Gukesh Dommaraju. GM Alireza Firouzja is at the second spot.