Beating Magnus Carlsen! Praggnanandhaa reveals ‘one-word' reaction from his father after win
India Grandmaster R Praggnanandhaa revealed his father's shocking reaction after he stunned World No. 1
Magnus Carlsen
for the first time at the Champions Chess Tour in 2022, aged 16.
'Since it was 2 a.m.,
my parents were asleep. I went and woke my dad up and said: 'I won.' He said, 'Good,' and then he went back to sleep because he had to go to the office the next day,' Praggnanandhaa said on Raj Shamani's Figuring Out podcast.
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Praggnanandhaa had first defeated Magnus Carlsen at the Champions Chess Tour in 2022. His maiden classical victory over the Norwegian came at Norway Chess 2024. In July 2025, he achieved a remarkable feat at the Las Vegas Freestyle Chess event, beating Carlsen twice in just three days.
Talking about the game against Magnus, the child prodigy said: 'I wasn't thinking anything. I was just playing and I got my chance out of nowhere. Everything happened in a few minutes. It was an online rapid game. I was quite happy.
'I was just excited because I wasn't expecting it and then suddenly… I mean, the game was also going in a trend where he was putting pressure on me, and then suddenly I got my chance.
Poll
Which victory do you think was more significant for Praggnanandhaa?
First win against Magnus Carlsen in 2022
Winning twice in three days in Las Vegas
His classical victory at Norway Chess 2024
'I had to play some accurate moves, which I did, and I won.
I was just very happy and I also didn't expect so much reaction from outside after that. So that was also, I think, a good thing for the game. I think it brought more attention,' Praggnanandhaa said.
'I was more excited about the fact that I just beat Magnus than the actual game. I didn't think the game was particularly great or anything like that. I did analyse it later.
'I realised I didn't really play well. It was like the fifth game of the day or something.
We were already tired and it was obvious that we were not playing our best, but I won and I think it was important for me back then.
'It gave me a lot of confidence and I realised that the top players are not invincible — you can beat them. Until you actually get that first win, you always feel like they are just in a different world. But once you beat them, you know that it's possible.'
Catch Rani Rampal's inspiring story on Game On, Episode 4. Watch Here!
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