Grandmaster R Praggnanandhaa showcased his exceptional skill and resilience to win his first-ever tournament on the Grand Chess Tour by triumphing at the Superbet Classic held in Bucharest, Romania. The young Indian star secured the title after a fierce tiebreak against France’s Maxime Vachier-Lagrave and Iran’s Alireza Firouzja.
In the final classical round, Praggnanandhaa drew with Armenian-American GM Levon Aronian, ensuring a three-way tie for first place, with all three leaders—Praggnanandhaa, Vachier-Lagrave, and Firouzja—finishing on 5.5 points. This led to a thrilling rapid tiebreaker featuring five-minute games with a two-second increment per move.
Praggnanandhaa began the tiebreak facing Firouzja with the black pieces, navigating a challenging position to secure a draw. Firouzja then drew with Vachier-Lagrave in the next game. The final and decisive encounter saw Praggnanandhaa overpower Vachier-Lagrave’s defenses, earning a crucial victory and clinching the top prize with 1.5 points in the blitz playoffs—half a point ahead of Firouzja and one point more than Vachier-Lagrave.
This win marked a significant comeback for Praggnanandhaa, who had faced disappointment last year after losing all his playoff games. Reflecting on his success, he said, “I didn’t do so well last time. I guess getting to rest a few hours before the tiebreak certainly helps.”
Praggnanandhaa credited his rest after the final classical game and acknowledged the support of his second, GM Vaibhav Suri, and his permanent coach, GM RB Ramesh. His impressive performance earned him a cash prize of USD 77,667 (approximately Rs 66 lakh).
Round 9 Highlights:
In Round 9 of the Superbet Classic, R Praggnanandhaa drew with Levon Aronian, while Alireza Firouzja secured a win against Deac Bogdan-Daniel. Maxime Vachier-Lagrave defeated Jan Krzysztof, and both Wesley So and D Gukesh drew their respective games against Nodirbek Abdusattorov and Fabiano Caruana.
Tiebreak Results:
The tiebreaks saw Praggnanandhaa draw with Firouzja, who also drew with Vachier-Lagrave, before Praggnanandhaa clinched victory by defeating Vachier-Lagrave in the decisive game.
With this victory, Praggnanandhaa firmly announced his arrival on the global stage, setting the tone for a promising future in international chess.
