Pragg aims to continue winning run against ‘very strong’ Caruana

In August 2022, Fabiano Caruana was asked about India’s young crop of GMs on a podcast on Chessbase India. Caruana spoke about how he rated Arjun Erigaisi highly, how he wanted to see how D Gukesh would play after his hot streak had cooled and how impressive Nihal Sarin’s play in the rapid and blitz formats has been. Then, he came to R Praggnanandhaa.

It was obvious that he rated the 18-year-old Indian in the rapid and blitz formats but Caruana, at that point, felt that Praggnanandhaa’s classical play still had some way to go.

“He feels he is under-rated in Classical… but I am not sure what that means,” he had said. “I won’t say he is a top player but he might be someday soon.”

On Saturday, when the two clash in the semi-final of the Chess World Cup, Caruana will have a chance to see just how much Praggnanandhaa has advanced over the past 12 months. The match will see them play two classical games (one each with black and white) and then proceed to the tie-breaker if needed where rapid games will be followed by blitz.

Praggnanandhaa, who became the first Indian since Viswanathan Anand in 2002 to reach the semi-final, isn’t afraid of the big stage. Rather, it seems to drive him and free him up. Evidence of this trait was seen in the FTX Crypto Cup when he beat Magnus Carlsen in three back-to-back games. It made the world take notice of the young player who has since continued his upward trajectory. One that has impressed Caruana.

“Pragg had three match victories in Crypto Cup — he beat Magnus on demand,” said Caruana. “It’s not about first or second place but to beat Magnus in a match is a big feat for a young player.”

Those wins will be something that Praggnanandhaa can fall back on each time he needs a confidence boost. At the same time, they will also put his opponents on alert. Underestimate him at your own peril because, as world No.2 Hikaru Nakamura found out earlier in the tournament, Praggnanandhaa can be brilliant and tenacious.

On paper, Caruana has a clear edge. He is known for precision and meticulous planning which will help him in the classical leg. His Elo rating in classical is 2782, rapid 2763, blitz 2813. He also is not known to take things easy — many will remember the 2018 World Championship battle with Carlsen which saw 12 straight draws.

“I wasn’t confident of winning this match; I would be lying if I said I was confident of winning the World Cup, or even confident of winning my next match,” said Caruana after beating Leinier Dominguez Perez in the quarter-finals.

But Praggnanandhaa will know that at this stage in the tournament, reputations matter little. Chess is too volatile and the format has allowed for a fair share of upsets. So even though his Elo rating is lower in all three formats — 2707 (classical), 2645 (rapid), 2623 (blitz), he knows he has a fair chance.

“It’s always a pleasure to play any strong players and Fabi (Caruana) is very strong,” said Praggnanandhaa after winning his quarter-final. “I will try to play my best. After Hikaru’s match, I needed a rest day to get out of that. Every rest day counts. I don’t know about the others.”

Managing fatigue will be just as important as the preparation and Caruana has had one extra day’s rest as compared to Praggnanandhaa, who played a draining tie-breaker with Erigaisi. How much of a factor will that prove to be?

“In general, my routine has been to relax in the evening, think about what to play for the next day, then do some preparation in the morning and play the game,” said Praggnanandhaa after advancing to the semi-final.

It has worked so far and he will hope things can continue in the same vein.