Can R Praggnanandhaa Win The Norway Chess 2026 Title? His Last Three Big Wins Suggest Yes

R Praggnanandhaa is getting ready for the final round of Norway Chess 2026, and he really has a chance to win one of the biggest trophies in chess.

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If you look closely at how he has been playing so far, you would not bet against him.

The 20-year-old Indian Grandmaster has been playing well in Oslo. He won three games in a row against some of the big names in chess.

R Praggnanandhaa beat Alireza Firouzja, Magnus Carlsen and the current World Champion D Gukesh in the last three rounds.

This changed everything in the title race before the day of the tournament.

The women’s title was already decided on Thursday. Bibisara Assaubayeva from Kazakhstan won the Norway Chess Women 2026 title after her game against Anna Muzychuk ended in a draw.

And, in the men’s open section, Wesley So, Alireza Firouzja, and R Praggnanandhaa are at the Top 3, racing for the title. This final match is going to be an exciting finish in Oslo.

Praggnanandhaa Completes Stunning Turnaround Against D Gukesh

R Praggnanandhaa had a game against D Gukesh in round 9, which was one of the most interesting matches of the tournament. It was at the Deichman Bjørvika library. R Praggnanandhaa and D Gukesh, who played against each other before in Round 5.

D Gukesh won that time, but this time, R Praggnanandhaa outplayed him.

He showed an aggressive game approach while playing with D Gukesh. Later, R Praggnanandhaa slowly turned the game in his favour and defended his position.

There was an important moment in the game, where Praggnanandhaas’s knight went into D Gukesh’s territory and then escaped. This helped R Praggnanandhaa gain an advantage. D Gukesh tried to attack, but Pragg defended really well. As the game went on, R Praggnanandhaa’s pieces became more active, and Gukesh’s advantage seemed to be disappearing. By move 34, R Praggnanandhaa was winning, so D Gukesh gave up.

Three Consecutive Classical Wins Change The Title Race

This win was really significant for R Praggnanandhaa. He beat D Gukesh, which was a deal. R Praggnanandhaa also moved closer to the leader, Wesley So. R Praggnanandhaa is now one of the favourites to win the title.

He will l play against Vincent Keymer in his next game, who has not lost a single game in this tournament.

This will be the deciding match for Praggnanandhaa. If he wins this, the title is not very far.

Divya Deshmukh Suffers Defeat As Assaubayeva Secures Women’s Crown

In the women’s game, Divya Deshmukh lost her game against Zhu Jiner. She was also one of the favourites to win, but conditions didn’t favour her much in the last few rounds. Bibisara Assaubayeva drew her game against Anna Muzychuk, which was enough for her to win the Norway Chess Women 2026 title.

Koneru Humpy lost her game against Ju Wenjun. This was an Armageddon game. As a result, Divya Deshmukh and Koneru Humpy came at the bottom of the women’s standings.

Magnus Carlsen did not play well again. He lost his Armageddon game against Wesley So. Alireza Firouzja won his Armageddon game against Vincent Keymer. This means he is still in the running for the title.

The last round is going to be really exciting. R Praggnanandhaa is half a point behind the leader. He will play against Vincent Keymer, and Magnus Carlsen will play against D Gukesh.