The second game of the FIDE Chess World Cup final ended in a draw as R Praggnanandhaa and Magnus Carlsen will battle out in a tie-breaker to decide the winner on Thursday. 30 moves were played until a stalemate was reached in Baku on Wednesday.
The two classical games have not given a winner yet and hence two tie-breakers will be played in a rapid format on the third day of the contest. The rapid fire will begin at 4:30 pm IST. Both Carlsen and Praggnanandhaa will get 25 minutes each in the face-off.
Praggnanandhaa speaking after the game, “My mom has been a huge load of support not only for me but also for my sister.”
Praggnanandhaa said, “Tomorrow, I just want to come with a fresh mind. I will try to rest today; it is very important because I’ve been playing a lot of tiebreaks here. I know it can take a lot of games or short ones as well, so I have to be ready for everything.”
“I didn’t feel he had a lot of energy; I didn’t think he was unwell. I hope he recovers for tomorrow”, Praggnanandhaa added.
Magnus Carlsen said, “I am very grateful to the organisers, FIDE and the doctors and nurses, who got me some good treatment. Today, I am feeling a bit better but I still didn’t feel like I had the energy for a full fight, so I thought, let’s get one more day of rest.”
Praggnanandhaa and Magnus Carlsen’s second games also went for a draw. The players’ shake hands after 30 intense moves and the final will be played in a tie-breaker tomorrow.
Notably, Aynur Sofiyeva, Azerbaijan’s first Woman Grandmaster and Deputy Chair of the State Committee for Family, Women and Children Affairs, made the ceremonial first move in the game between Magnus Carlsen and Praggnanandhaa.
