New Delhi: Indian Grandmaster R Praggnanandhaa continues to dazzle at the Las Vegas Freestyle Chess Grand Slam Tour, defeating World No. 3 Fabiano Caruana in the opening round of the upper-bracket qualifiers on Friday. The 18-year-old prodigy, playing with the white pieces, showcased remarkable composure and precision to secure the win against the American heavyweight.
This victory comes hot on the heels of his sensational triumph over World No. 1 Magnus Carlsen, which helped Praggnanandhaa finish joint-top of the leaderboard in the initial group stage with 4.5 points. He shared the top spot in Group A alongside Uzbekistan’s Nodirbek Abdusattorov, Javokhir Sindarov, and Levon Aronian, who all qualified for the quarterfinals. Carlsen, shockingly, finished fifth in the group and failed to make it to the top bracket, effectively ending his campaign.
Fellow Indian GM Arjun Erigaisi also advanced to the upper bracket, finishing joint-third in Group B with 4 points, tied with Fabiano Caruana. American GM Hikaru Nakamura dominated Group B with an outstanding 6 out of 7, followed by Hans Niemann with 4.5 points. The remaining players in Group B—Leinier Dominguez Perez, Samuel Sevian, Ray Robson, and India’s Vidit Gujrathi—failed to qualify for the quarterfinals, with Vidit finishing last.
The Las Vegas Freestyle Grand Slam Tour features 16 top players divided into two groups of eight. Each player competes once against every other player in their group, and the top four from each group advance to the quarterfinals. According to tournament rules, only those who qualify for the top bracket remain in contention for the title.
Praggnanandhaa’s form has been nothing short of extraordinary in 2025. This season alone, he has already claimed three major titles — the Tata Steel Chess Tournament, the Superbet Classic (part of the Grand Chess Tour) in Romania, and the UzChess Cup. These victories have propelled him to a career-best world ranking of No. 4, leapfrogging India’s reigning World Champion D Gukesh and fellow rising star Arjun Erigaisi.
As the knockout stages progress, all eyes will remain on Praggnanandhaa, whose fearless and mature play continues to shake up the world chess elite
