'Hold your head high, whole nation is proud' - Cricketers delighted as 18-year-old R Praggnanandhaa ends as runner-up in Chess World Cup

18-year-old R Praggnanandhaa grabbed eyeballs throughout the tournament as he defeated World No. 2 Hikaru Nakamura and No. 3 Fabiano Caruana en route to the summit clash of the Chess World Cup 2023. After three days of pulsating action in the finals against World No. 1 Magnus Carlsen, Praggnanandhaa had to settle for the runner-up spot as his Norwegian opponent bagged his maiden World Cup title on Thursday, August 24.

Praggnanandhaa became the youngest player to reach the finals of the World Cup and also became the youngest to qualify for the Candidates tournament which will be held in Canada, after the legendary Bobby Fischer and Carlsen. For the unversed, Praggnanandhaa became an international master at the age of 10, the youngest at the time to achieve the feat.

A couple of years later, he became the second youngest to become a grandmaster. The Chennai-born is the younger brother of Woman Grandmaster and International Master R. Vaishali. It is interesting to note that Praggnanandhaa was born in 2005, the same year in which Carlsen made his World Cup debut.

The thrilling encounter between two generational talents enthralled the chess fraternity and it goes without saying that fans will be waiting for another encounter between them in the near future. While Carlsen received plaudits for his amazing achievement, chess fans didn't forget to praise Praggnanandhaa, who gave the world's top-ranked player a good run for his money. The youngster has a long career ahead of him. He surely would have learned a lot from his World Cup campaign as he faced some of the best players in the world.

His impressive showing in the marquee event was acknowledged by some renowned cricketers who praised the teenager for making India proud.

Fantastic achievement. Onward and higher from here! #Praggnanandhaa https://t.co/OvmzBWZGoa

— Cricketwallah (@cricketwallah) August 24, 2023

Pragg. 👏👏🤗 you made us proud as usual. #praggnanandha @rpragchess

— Ashwin 🇮🇳 (@ashwinravi99) August 24, 2023

We are proud of you #Praggnanandhaa Keeping Rocking @rpragchess 🇮🇳♟️

— S.Badrinath (@s_badrinath) August 24, 2023

Hold your head high Praggnanandhaa. The whole nation is proud of you 🇮🇳🫡@rpragchess pic.twitter.com/YqUAOiNl6u

— Yuzvendra Chahal (@yuzi_chahal) August 24, 2023

Congratulations on an incredible tournament, @rpragchess!
Keep chasing your dreams and making India proud. ♟️🇮🇳 #FIDEWorldCup

— Sachin Tendulkar (@sachin_rt) August 24, 2023

A spirited effort, and an incredible run in the #FIDEWorldCup2023 🙌

Well played, Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa. 🇮🇳 is proud of you!#ChessWorldCup #Praggnanandhaa pic.twitter.com/LQ7Go6Rw6c

— Delhi Capitals (@DelhiCapitals) August 24, 2023