Moments of brilliance and below-par efforts — it has been the story of the Indian players’ performances in the ongoing Norway Chess 2026 at Deichman Bjorvika here.
On Monday, Grandmaster R. Praggnanandhaa inflicted a second straight defeat on Alireza Firouzja in the classical game in the seventh round, coming up with an impressive show. Playing with white pieces, he worked his way to an advantageous position and with the Frenchman under time pressure, couldn’t withstand the attack and succumbed in 51 moves to hand his opponent three points.
D. Gukesh in action against Wesley So at the Norway Chess Championship. Photo: Special Arrangement
So (12.5 points) continues to top the leaderboard despite the loss with the second-placed Firouzja 2.5 points behind.
World champion D. Gukesh, the other Indian in the fray, pulled off a win in the Armageddon against Wesley So after missing an opportunity to score in the classical.
World No. 1 Magnus Carlsen and Vincent Keymer played out a hard-fought classical draw in which neither player could break through. Carlsen later prevailed in the Armageddon game to secure the extra points and remain within striking distance of the leaders.
R. Praggnanandhaa inflicted a second straight defeat on Alireza Firouzja at the Norway Chess championship. Photo: Special Arrangement
The women’s section saw Bibisara Assaubayeva extend her lead at the top to 2.5 points with a win in round seven. Facing Zhu Jiner with white pieces, Assaubayeva took control after a difficult middlegame and converted her advantage with confidence. The three points give the Kazakh grandmaster a significant boost as the tournament enters its final stretch.
Divya Deshmukh’s good run continued as she outwitted Koneru Humpy in the tie-break after missing a chance to win the classical match. In the Armageddon, the young Indian GM managed to score, leaving her experienced opponent languishing at the bottom of the table.
The results (seventh round)
Open: R. Praggnanandhaa (9) bt Alireza Firouzja (Fra, 10), Vincent Keymer (Ger, 9) lost to Magnus Carlsen (Nor, 9) in Armageddon, D. Gukesh (8) bt Wesley So (USA, 12.5) in Armageddon.
Women: Divya Deshmukh (10) bt Koneru Humpy (6.5) in Armageddon, Ju Wenjun (Chn, 9) lost to Anna Muzychuk (Ukr, 9.5) in Armageddon, Bibisara Assaubayeva (Kaz, 12.5) bt Zhu Jiner (Chn, 7).
(The writer is in Oslo at the invitation of Norway Chess.)
Published - June 02, 2026 11:01 am IST