The world No 1, Magnus Carlsen, has been the dominant performer in recent years in Norway Chess, the elite tournament played annually at Stavanger. From 2019 to 2022 he won it four times a row, before a setback in 2023. Coming into the 2024 event with eight victories in nine tournaments, he was the strong favourite.
Wednesday’s third round was off script. Carlsen not only lost to India’s rising 18-year-old star Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu, he was comprehensively outplayed in a 1 e4 c5 Sicilian which the teenager controlled with his centralised d5 knight.
