Latest news with #Caruana
India Today
6 days ago
- Sport
- India Today
Las Vegas Freestyle chess: Praggnanandhaa out of title race, Erigaisi into semis
Arjun Erigaisi stormed into the semi-finals of the Las Vegas Freestyle chess by defeating Uzbekistan's Nodirbek Abdusattorov, but R Praggnanandhaa bowed out of the title race after losing to USA's Fabiano Caruana. Erigaisi prevailed over Abdusattorov 1.5-0.5 while Praggnanandhaa went down fighting against Caruana in an intense battle. Erigaisi looked a class apart in both games against the Uzbekistan ace and enjoyed the advantage from the word go. Playing white in the second game, the Indian won a rook for a Bishop early, and very soon, he simply overpowered Abdusattorov with his extra material, making it not like a freestyle and Caruana were involved in an intense battle that saw as many as seven decisive games being played by the two and the Indian was in the lead on three occasions. Praggnanandhaa won the first, lost the second, and this trend continued till the sixth, until Caruana pulled away before winning the decisive seventh game. The American duo of Levon Aronian and Hans Moke Niemann made their way into the semifinals by beating Hikaru Nakamura and Javokhir Sindarov of Uzbekistan respectively. In the semi-finals, Erigaisi will face Aronian while Caruana will take on Niemann. In the lower bracket, Magnus Carlsen returned to winning ways by beating India's Vidit Gujrathi 2-0 and ousting him from the competition. Vincent Keymer, Wesley So also found themselves in the winners column. Results: Las Vegas Freestyle chess quarterfinals and lower bracketResults quarterfinals: Arjun Erigaisi (Ind) beat Nodirbek Abdusattorov (Uzb) 1.5-0.5; R Praggnanandhaa (Ind) lost to Fabiano Caruana (Usa) 3-4; Levon Aronian (Usa) beat Hikarru Nakamura (Usa) 2.5-1.5; Hans Moke Niemann (Usa) beat Javokhir Sindarov (Uzb) bracket: Lenier Dominguez Perez (Usa) beat Bibisara Assaubuyeva (Kaz) 1.5-0.5; Magnus Carlsen (Nor) beat Vidit Gujrathi (Ind) 2-0; Wesley So (Usa) beat Samuel Sevian (Usa) 1.5-0.5; Vincent Keymer (Ger) beat Robson Ray 2.5-1.5.- Ends
Indian Express
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Indian Express
Praggnanandhaa loses to Caruana after 7-game marathon lasting over 10 hours; Arjun Erigaisi, Hans Niemann in semis
Arjun Erigaisi entered the semi-final of the Las Vegas leg of the Freestyle Chess Grand Slam Tour on Friday after prevailing over Nodirbek Abdusattorov in a straightforward two-game contest at the Wynn casino hotel. But what Arjun's game lacked in drama — and in length — his good friend Praggnanandhaa delivered: the Indian played out a seven-game royal rumble against Fabiano Caruana that lasted just over 10 hours. In the end, unfortunately, Praggnanandhaa lost. Arjun and Caruana will be joined in the semi-finals by Hans Niemann and Levon Aronian. The Praggnanandhaa vs Fabiano Caruana, which lasted for 10 hours, had plenty of drama: rooks being blundered, both players winning on demand, and even a unique Armageddon game where players had to make secret bids on time they would get on their clock. 'It's amazing. I've had a few of these matches, but none quite this long. And also with so many swings, you know, losing the first game and then coming back and then also losing with white… I thought it should be over at that point, but then somehow coming back in the rapid and then reversing. The Armageddon was also crazy. It was very, very complicated. And then he was also trying to flag me, but at some point I looked at the clock, I saw I had 17 seconds. I looked like a few minutes later, I still had 17 seconds. I thought, okay, I'm probably not going to get flagged,' Caruana told the official Freestyle Chess YouTube handle. The first game of the Praggnanandhaa vs Caruana showdown saw the Indian claim a win with white pieces, which meant that the American needed to win on demand in the reverse game with white pieces himself. Caruana did just that after a little help from Praggnanandhaa, who suddenly blundered his rook under time pressure. With the two 30 min (+ 30 sec per move increment) games proving inconclusive, both players were back on the board to battle it out in two 10 min (+ 10 sec per move) games. Here too, Praggnanandhaa won the first game, this time with black pieces. Then, he lost the reverse fixture with white pieces. Now the matter would be decided with an even frenetic pace: two games of 5+2 blitz games. In the first one, there was a wild time drama on the board was reflected on the evaluation bar which rocked up and down like a plane in turbulence with every couple of moves. Finally, Caruana emerged victorious. Now Praggnanandhaa needed to win on demand. And he did, thus forcing a unique Armageddon battle. The Armageddon format usually sees the player with white pieces have more time on the clock, but they need to win. The player with black pieces have less time on their clock, but they just have to hold out a draw to secure victory. At the Las Vegas event of the Freestyle Grand Slam Tour, there was a unique twist to this, with both players bidding the time they would want to play as black. Praggnanandhaa bid 4:27 for playing black, Caruana bid 4:02. So Praggnanandhaa played with white with five minutes on the clock while Caruana had draw odds with 4:02. It was there that Praggnanandhaa finally yielded. Caruana has played a few Armageddon games in the past and drew from those experiences. 'I got black in Armageddon every single time. I think that I realized probably it's good to have black I don't know why, but it feels better to have black, even if you're down a minute. In each Armageddon game, I felt like it's easier to play a bit faster. With black, you have less to worry about. With white, you always have to consider so many things and it gets in your head that you have to get an advantage or something. So, it feels a bit easier to play freely with black, which is why I went a bit lower (with his time for black bid).' In the other games of the tournament, Arjun defeated Nodirbek by winning the second 30+30 game after a hard-fought draw in the first game. Meanwhile, in the Lower Bracket, Carlsen defeated Vidit Gujrathi in both games. Besides Carlsen, Wesley So, Vincent Keymer and Leinier Dominguez also won their ties, thus eliminating Gujrathi, Sam Sevian, Ray Robson and Bibisara Assaubayeva — all four players were eliminated and shared 13th place at the tournament.
Time of India
6 days ago
- Sport
- Time of India
Freestyle Grand Slam Tour: Arjun Erigaisi storms into semi-final; R Praggnanandhaa out of title race
File photo of Arjun Erigaisi. In a dramatic quarterfinal at the $750,000 Freestyle Grand Slam Chess Tour in Las Vegas, Indian Grandmaster Arjun Erigaisi advanced to the semifinals by defeating Uzbekistan's Nodirbek Abdusattorov 1.5-0.5, while compatriot R Praggnanandhaa lost to USA's Fabiano Caruana in an intense 3-4 battle. Americans Levon Aronian and Hans Niemann also secured victories in their quarter-final matches. Aronian defeated Hikaru Nakamura 2.5-1.5, while Niemann overcame Uzbekistan's Javokhir Sindarov 4-2. Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE NOW! The semifinals will see Arjun facing Aronian, and Niemann competing against Caruana. In the lower bracket matches, world number one Magnus Carlsen defeated India's Vidit Gujrathi 2-0, showing a return to his winning form. American Wesley So claimed victory over Samuel Sevian with a score of 1.5-0.5, while Leinier Dominguez Perez secured a comfortable 1.5-0.5 win against Kazakhstan's Bibisara Assaubayeva. Vincent Keymer of Germany, who won the first leg, continued his success by defeating American Robson Ray 2.5-1.5. Arjun displayed exceptional skill in both games against Abdusattorov, maintaining an advantage throughout. In the second game, playing with white pieces, he gained an early advantage by winning a rook for a bishop. In the first game, despite holding an early advantage, some unforced errors by Arjun in the later stages allowed Abdusattorov to secure half a point. The match between Praggnanandhaa and Caruana was particularly intense, featuring seven decisive games. Praggnanandhaa took the lead three times during the match, with both players trading victories until the sixth game. Caruana ultimately prevailed by winning the decisive seventh game. However, Praggnanandhaa still has a chance to continue in the tournament through the lower bracket, where he joins seven other players in another knockout format. Catch Rani Rampal's inspiring story on Game On, Episode 4. Watch Here!
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First Post
6 days ago
- Sport
- First Post
Heartbreak for Praggnanandhaa as Caruana wins thrilling tie-breaker at Freestyle Chess Las Vegas; Erigaisi impresses
Arjun Erigaisi was the only Indian Grandmaster to reach the semi-finals of the Freestyle Chess Las Vegas after in-form R Praggnanandhaa suffered a crushing defeat against Fabiano Caruana despite stretching the match to seven games. Magnus Carlsen also won his match. read more Indian chess sensation R Praggnanandhaa suffered a heartbreaking defeat to American Grandmaster Fabiano Caruana in an Armageddon game as he was knocked out of the Freestyle Chess Las Vegas Grand Slam title race on Thursday, while his compatriot Arjun Erigaisi became the only Indian to reach the semi-final. Coming from the high of dismantling Magnus Carlsen in just 39 moves and sparking his exit from the tournament, Praggnanandhaa was in inspired form as he went toe to toe against world No.3 and one of the best players on the circuit, Caruana. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Praggnanandhaa loses thrilling contest vs Caruana The first Armageddon tie-breaker of the tournament was played after there was nothing to separate Praggnanandhaa and Caruana following six matches, as they were tied 3-3. The two players won a Classical game each at the start of their quarter-finals, played with a time control of 30 minutes + 30 seconds per move. They remain tied even after the two Rapid games (10+10) and the two Blitz games (5+2), forcing the match into an Armageddon tie-breaker. In an Armageddon game, the player with Black pieces only needs a draw while White has to register a clear and has more time on the clock. Nonetheless, Caruana outwitted Praggnanandhaa with Black in the Armageddon game after 72 moves as the 32-year-old American chess star progressed to the semi-finals, setting up a match against fellow compatriot Hans Niemann, who reached the last four stage by beating Uzbek Javokhir Sindarov 4-2. An electrifying finish as 🇺🇸Fabiano advances to the Semifinals! — Take Take Take (@TakeTakeTakeApp) July 18, 2025 India's Erigaisi had the easiest of outings in the quarter-finals as he thumped Nodirbek Abdusattorov of Uzbekistan 1.5-.5 in the first two Classical games. He will be up against Levon Aronian in the semi-finals. Arnonian has been in top form in the Las Vegas leg of the Freestyle Chess Grand Slam, having eliminated Carlsen on Day 1 and defeated world No.2 Hikaru Nakamura 2.5-1.5 in the quarter-finals.
Hans India
6 days ago
- Science
- Hans India
Study decodes eye contact for human-robot communication
The timing of eye contact is key to how we communicate with both humans and robots, revealed a study led by Australian researchers. Researchers from Flinders University found that not just making eye contact, but when and how it's done, fundamentally shapes how we understand others, including robots, according to a statement from the HAVIC Lab (Human, Artificial + Virtual Interactive Cognition), Xinhua news agency reported. 'Our findings have helped to decode one of our most instinctive behaviours and how it can be used to build better connections, whether you're talking to a teammate, a robot, or someone who communicates differently,' said cognitive neuroscientist Nathan Caruana, who led the HAVIC Lab. In a study with 137 participants, researchers found that a specific gaze sequence -- looking at an object, making eye contact, then returning to the object -- was the most effective non-verbal way to signal a request for help. Caruana said it's the context and sequence of eye movements, not just how often they occur, that make them meaningful, with participants responding similarly to humans and robots alike. He said humans naturally respond to social cues, even from machines, and that understanding these signals can strengthen connections with both people and technology. The study, published in the London-based Royal Society Open Science, suggests that adding human-like gaze to robots and virtual assistants could make them more intuitive and effective communicators. Beyond robotics, the findings could enhance communication in high-stakes settings such as sports, defense, and noisy workplaces, and support those who rely on visual cues, including autistic or hearing-impaired individuals. The HAVIC Lab is now exploring how factors like gaze duration, repetition, and beliefs about a partner's identity (human or AI-driven) affect eye contact perception, according to the team.
