Magnus Carlsen jumped in his chair before leaning so far ahead towards the board that he could have whispered in the ears of his king. Trouble was brewing in the air for the crownless king of chess and his wooden king on the board. In a tense endgame, Carlsen had one move that could have ensured survival: king to e2. The clock had run down to 14 seconds when Carlsen made the 48th move — king to f4 — which lost him the game instead. Because once he had made the move, all his opponent, R Praggnanandhaa, had to do was march Carlsen’s king to its death in seven moves.For the first time since Viswanathan Anand at Linares 2007, a player — of any nationality — defeated Magnus Carlsen twice in the same classical tournament. Praggnanandhaa defeated the world no 1 from Norway for the second time in a week at the Norway Chess tournament being held at Oslo’s Deichman Bjørvika. He had also defeated the world no 1 at the 2024 Norway Chess, before drawing their second game that year.A win over Carlsen, that too in classical chess, is a badge worn proudly in this sport. But if he was feeling celebratory on Tuesday, Praggnanadhaa did a good job of concealing his emotions. When asked if his wins over Carlsen across two Norway Chess editions and Gukesh’s infamous win from last year means that there is a change of guard in the sport, the 20-year-old brushed it aside as an “exaggeration”.Facing Carlsen on the board in classical chess, even though he plays little of the format these days, has always carried an intimidation factor. Carlsen, even when not at his best, had felt invincible not too long ago. Over the years, has the aura of Carlsen as an opponent eroded? World No 1 Magnus Carlsen reacts during his round 8 game at Norway Chess against India’s P Praggnanandhaa. (Photo: Michal Walusza / Norway Chess)“I wouldn’t say I felt intimidated (facing Carlsen). I always felt more excited playing him than being intimidated,” Pragg told Indian media in Oslo with a cultivated nonchalance in his voice. “So these games always bring out my best. I don’t think that affected me. In all my games with him I was always playing at least decent quality chess.”A true measure of how significant a win over Carlsen in classical was came from Pragg’s coach grandmaster Vaibhav Suri.“Against Magnus, you can never have enough wins,” Suri told The Indian Express. “But this result shows that Magnus is great, but maybe he is not invincible.”Story continues below this adIt was Carlsen’s fourth classical loss at this year’s Norway Chess tournament, one that saw him drop to fifth spot in the six-player standings. The only player below him in the standings is world champion Gukesh D. With two more rounds to go at Norway Chess, Praggnanandhaa finds himself in third spot in the standings, just two points behind leader Wesley So. World No 1 Magnus Carlsen reacts during his round 8 game at Norway Chess against India’s P Praggnanandhaa. (Photo: Michal Walusza / Norway Chess)Praggnanandhaa seemed to dismiss the significance of beating Carlsen, by saying that getting three points was more crucial, because it kept him in the race to win the title.“Beating Magnus in any format is good,” said Praggnanadhaa. “…but more than that I think winning at this stage of the tournament is more important because when you win in classical you get three points which are more important for the standings.”There is something about Praggnanandhaa vs Carlsen encounters that end up being no-holds-barred brawls on the board.Story continues below this ad“Today it was more of me who took the risk,” said Praggnanandhaa. “We usually end up getting fighting games. I think we both want to beat each other so we end up creating something out of nothing.”In a game that started with the Indian pulling out the French Defence with black pieces, Carlsen seemed to be surprised by the opening choice. He used up 20 more minutes of his time compared to Pragg by the seventh move. Carlsen ended up using up almost half his time by just the 10th move, an indicator that he was caught off-guard.Pragg’s coach Vaibhav Suri revealed to The Indian Express that the opening idea that they used against Pragg had been concocted just before the Candidates, but only now had the opportunity arisen to use it.Just before he headed back to his hotel room on Tuesday, Praggnanandhaa chose to give his nuanced take on the result.Story continues below this ad“If you take Carlsen’s tournaments from last year, he has won everything that he has played in. This is just one tournament where a few moments haven’t gone his way. I think he is still the best.”(The writer is in Oslo at the invitation of Norway Chess)