'Praggnanandhaa playing better than Gukesh but...': Viswanathan Anand makes massive statement after Norway Chess

Legendary Viswanathan Anand thinks that Indian Grandmaster R Praggnanandhaa has overtaken world champion D Gukesh on current form. Anand's statement comes after Praggnanandhaa triumphed in Norway Chess while Gukesh finished at the bottom of the six-man table.

Praggnanandhaa even defeated World No.1 Magnus Carlsen twice enroute to his historic win in Oslo, which made him the first Indian to win the Norway Chess title. The 20-year-old won his last four games in a row to clinch the title in a stunning comeback victory.

Gukesh, meanwhile, continued to struggle and finished last, raising further alarm over his form ahead of a world title defence later this year against Grandmaster Javokhir Sindarov of Uzbekistan.

Anand's big statement

Anand praised Praggnanandhaa for his performance in Oslo and said he was happy with the Indian's comeback.

"I am delighted that Praggnanandhaa has won Norway Chess in an impressive style. I am very happy at the spectacular turnaround he made in the last four rounds. He is playing the game with some amazingly impressive concepts and style," Anand told PTI.

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Anand further added that on current form Praggnanandhaa is ahead of the reigning world champion, but he also said that things can change quickly.

"At this moment, Praggnanandhaa is playing better than Gukesh, but anything can change. I think these fluctuations will continue. Gukesh seems to be stuck a bit," Anand added.

He also said that Gukesh needs to get inspired by Praggnanandhaa's performance in Norway and learn from him.

"I think he can take inspiration from Pragg. He can see that if you persist with hard work then at some point things will change," the former world champion suggested the current title holder.

Praggnanandhaa and Gukesh met twice in Norway with the first game ending in a draw but the former securing a crucial win in the second. Praggnanandhaa is at the 11th spot in the latest live ratings while Gukesh has slipped to the 25th spot due to his poor form.