Norway Chess: Naka new world number 2, Pragg and Carlsen score

by Carlos Alberto Colodro
6/2/2024 – For a second round in a row at the Norway Chess event in Stavanger, all three classical games ended decisively. Hikaru Nakamura, Magnus Carlsen and R Praggnanandhaa each grabbed 3 points after beating Ding Liren, Alireza Firouzja and Fabiano Caruana respectively. Nakamura thus kept the sole lead — his victory over Ding also saw him surpass the 2800-rating barrier and climb to the second spot in the live ratings list. | Photo: Stev Bonhage / Norway Chess

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Naka leapfrogs Caruana in the ratings list

Defending champion Hikaru Nakamura remains as the sole leader at the Norway Chess elite tournament after beating Ding Liren with the black pieces in their classical encounter. Magnus Carlsen climbed to second place in the standings thanks to a win with white over Alireza Firouzja, while R Praggnanandhaa inflicted a second consecutive loss on Fabiano Caruana to go into round 6 (out of 10) in sole third place.

Nakamura’s second classical win in a row gained him 4.6 rating points, which allowed him to leapfrog Caruana in the live ratings list. Nakamura is now the second-highest rated player in the world with 2802.8 Elo points to his name. The 5-time US champion had kept a 2800+ official rating from June 2015 to October 2015 (with a peak rating of 2816), and he did not surpass the 2800-rating barrier since then.

The sole leader defeated a clearly out-of-form Ding, who collected a third consecutive loss in Stavanger. The reigning world champion has so far lost 13.6 rating points in the event, which leaves him in 13th place in the live ratings list. Nakamura reflected on his colleague’s visible struggle amid the game (players can share their thoughts in a confessional booth in this televised elite event):

It’s very awkward, actually. I’ve played Ding many times over the years, but he definitely doesn’t seem like the same person. [...] At some moment he started bouncing up and down — he was shaking, literally shaking — and it’s very hard in a way because when it seems as though something’s wrong [with your opponent] it’s very hard to not feel bad for them.

We are only halfway through the demanding event, so we hope that Ding recovers his usual form in the coming days.

In round 6, the Chinese GM has the tough task of facing Carlsen with black, while leader Nakamura will play Caruana with the white pieces — in their previous encounter with this colour configuration, in round 8 of the Candidates Tournament, Nakamura convincingly defeated his countryman in what was his fifth consecutive classic victory with white in their head-to-head record.

Ding Liren

Reigning world champion Ding Liren | Photo: Stev Bonhage

Expert analysis by Robert Ris

Endgame mishaps

The victories obtained by Carlsen and Pragg on Saturday came after their opponents suddenly faltered in the endgame. Firouzja erred on move 77 playing black against Carlsen.

Carlsen v. Firouzja

Trading rooks with 77...Rxd6 leads to a losing king and pawn endgame — playing 77...Rb1 or 77...Rb2 was the way to keep the balance, since after 78.Rxh6 Kg7 the inferior side can defend against the f and h-pawns.

There followed 78.Kxd6 Kf7 79.Ke5 Ke7 80.f6+ Kf8 81.Kf4, gaining the distant opposition.

Resignation came after 81...Ke8 82.Ke4. Brutal.

Magnus Carlsen

Magnus Carlsen | Photo: Stev Bonhage

Firouzja played the aforementioned losing move when he had around 20 seconds on his clock, while Caruana faltered when he had almost 8 minutes to Pragg’s 40 seconds.

Praggnanandhaa v. Caruana

66...Kf6 here loses to 67.Nf5, and Black cannot deal with all of White’s threats, e.g.:

  • 67...Kg6 fails to 68.Ke5 Nf6 (68...Kf7 69.Kd6 and the white king infiltrates decisively) 68.Nxh6
  • 67...Ke6, as seen in the game, fails to 68.Kd4 Kf6 69.Nxh6 (diagram)

Two pawns to the good, Pragg needed eight more moves to force his opponent’s resignation. This was Caruana’s second consecutive classical loss in the event.

(In the first diagrammed position, Black can continue defending with 66...Kf7, when 67.Nf5 would be replied by 67...Nf6+ and White needs to go back with 68.Kf3.)

Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu

Praggnanandhaa stands at a 1½-point distance from the leader | Photo: Stev Bonhage

Standings after round 5

Rk Name FED Rtg Pts
1 Hikaru Nakamura USA 2794 10
2 Magnus Carlsen NOR 2830 9
3 R Praggnanandhaa IND 2747 8.5
4 Alireza Firouzja FRA 2737 6.5
5 Fabiano Caruana USA 2805 5
6 Ding Liren CHN 2762 2.5

All games - Classical

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MoveNResultEloPlayers
1.e41,165,57054%2421---
1.d4946,47455%2434---
1.Nf3281,31256%2441---
1.c4181,93756%2442---
1.g319,68856%2427---
1.b314,23654%2427---
1.f45,88648%2377---
1.Nc33,79651%2384---
1.b41,75348%2380---
1.a31,19754%2403---
1.e31,06848%2408---
1.d394850%2378---
1.g466246%2361---
1.h444653%2374---
1.c342651%2425---
1.h327956%2416---
1.a410860%2468---
1.f39147%2431---
1.Nh38966%2508---
1.Na34262%2482---
1.d4 5 Nf6 2 2.c4 7 e6 7 3.Nf3 4 d5 6 4.g3 6 Be7 14:53 5.Bg2 9 0-0 10 6.0-0 4 c6 8 7.Qc2 12:51 b6 12 8.Bf4 28 Bb7 3:51 9.Rd1 1:47 Nbd7 2:14 10.Ne5 1:53 Nh5 1:41 11.Bd2 29 Nhf6 17 12.Bf4 17 The position is equal. Nh5 26 13.Bd2 2:15 Nhf6 8 14.Bf4 1:52 Not much happened in this game. Weighted Error Value: White=0.02 (flawless) /Black=0.00 (flawless) . OK: White=1 Black=1 ½–½
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WhiteEloWBlackEloBResYearECOEventRnd
Ding,L2762Carlsen,M2830½–½2024E08Norway Chess 20241.1
Praggnanandhaa R2747Firouzja,A2738½–½2024E04Norway Chess 20241.2
Caruana,F2805Nakamura,H2795½–½2024C54Norway Chess 20241.3
Carlsen,M2830Nakamura,H2795½–½2024C64Norway Chess 20242.1
Firouzja,A2738Caruana,F2805½–½2024D02Norway Chess 20242.2
Ding,L2762Praggnanandhaa R2747½–½2024A20Norway Chess 20242.3
Praggnanandhaa R2747Carlsen,M28301–02024B42Norway Chess 20243.1
Caruana,F2805Ding,L27621–02024C54Norway Chess 20243.2
Nakamura,H2795Firouzja,A2738½–½2024D33Norway Chess 20243.3
Caruana,F2805Carlsen,M28300–12024C54Norway Chess 20244.1
Nakamura,H2795Praggnanandhaa R27471–02024E46Norway Chess 20244.2
Firouzja,A2738Ding,L27621–02024D02Norway Chess 20244.3
Carlsen,M2830Firouzja,A27381–02024C67Norway Chess 20245.1
Ding,L2762Nakamura,H27950–12024A34Norway Chess 20245.2
Praggnanandhaa R2747Caruana,F28051–02024E05Norway Chess 20245.3
Carlsen,M2830Ding,L27621–02024A13Norway Chess 20246.1
Firouzja,A2738Praggnanandhaa R2747½–½2024D25Norway Chess 20246.2
Nakamura,H2795Caruana,F2805½–½2024E45Norway Chess 20246.3
Nakamura,H2795Carlsen,M2830½–½2024E25Norway Chess 20247.1
Caruana,F2805Firouzja,A2738½–½2024C54Norway Chess 20247.2
Praggnanandhaa R2747Ding,L2762½–½2024C54Norway Chess 20247.3
Carlsen,M2830Praggnanandhaa R2747½–½2024C81Norway Chess 20248.1
Ding,L2762Caruana,F2805½–½2024E61Norway Chess 20248.2
Firouzja,A2738Nakamura,H2795½–½2024C54Norway Chess 20248.3
Firouzja,A2738Carlsen,M2830½–½2024C54Norway Chess 20249.1
Nakamura,H2795Ding,L2762½–½2024E51Norway Chess 20249.2
Caruana,F2805Praggnanandhaa R2747½–½2024E48Norway Chess 20249.3
Carlsen,M2830Caruana,F2805½–½2024C77Norway Chess 202410.1
Praggnanandhaa R2747Nakamura,H2795½–½2024C70Norway Chess 202410.2
Ding,L2762Firouzja,A2738½–½2024E04Norway Chess 202410.3

All games - Armageddon

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Replay and check the LiveBook here
1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 e5 6.Bb5+ B56: Classical Sicilian: Unusual Lines. Nbd7 7.Nf5 a6 8.Be2 Nc5 9.Ng3 9.Bg5!? 9...b5 10.a3 10.b4 Ne6 11.a4 10...Be7= 11.0-0 0-0 12.Be3N Predecessor: 12.f4 Bb7 13.Bf3 Ne6 14.Nge2 Qb6+ 15.Kh1 Rac8 16.f5 Nc5 17.Be3 b4 18.axb4 Qxb4 ½-½ Mahsheimer,A-Varas,L Villa Gesell Madariaga 5th 1970 (7.3) 12...Bb7 13.Bf3 g6 14.Qd2 h5 15.Bh6 Re8 16.Rfe1 Ne6 17.Rad1 Nd4 17...Nh7 18.Nf5= Nxf5 18...gxf5 19.Qg5+ Kh8 20.Qg7# 19.exf5 Bxf3 20.gxf3 Qc8 21.fxg6 fxg6 22.Bg5 Qf5 23.Bxf6 Qxf6 24.Nd5 Qxf3 25.Re3 Qf7! 26.Rg3 Bh4 27.Rg2 27.Rh3= Bd8 28.Nc3 27...Kh7 28.Nc3 e4 29.Qe2 29.Qe3 29...Qf3 30.Rxd6 Rad8! 31.Rxd8 31.Rgxg6? Rxd6 32.Rg3 Bxg3 32...Qxe2? 33.Nxe2 Bxg3 34.Nxg3-+ 33.hxg3 Qxe2 34.Nxe2 Rd1+ 35.Kg2 Rd2-+ 31.Rdxg6? Qxe2 32.Kh1 Qxc2-+ 31.Qd2 was worth a try. e3 32.fxe3 31...Rxd8-+ 31...Bxd8 32.Qe3 32.Kf1?
32.h3 32...Qf4? 32...a5!-+ has better winning chances. 33.Rg3 33.Nxe4? Rd1+-+ 33...Bxg3 34.Qxf3 exf3 35.fxg3 Rd2 36.Nxb5 Rxc2 33.Qe3 33.Qxe4? Rd1+ 34.Ke2 Rd2+ 35.Ke1 Bxf2+ 36.Kf1 Rd1+ 37.Nxd1 Qxe4-+ 33...Qf3 33...Qxe3 34.fxe3 Bf6 35.Nxe4 Bxb2 34.h3 34.Qxe4? perishes. Rd1+ 35.Nxd1 Qxe4-+ 34.Qe2!= was the only way to keep the balance. 34...Rd6 35.Rg1?      
35.Qa7+ Kh6 36.Qe3+ Qxe3 37.fxe3 35...a5!-+ 36.b4 axb4 37.axb4 Bf6? 37...Kg7-+ Strongly threatening ...Ra6. 38.Qxf3 exf3 38.Qxe4?       38.Rg3= Qh1+ 39.Rg1 38...Rd1+ Inferior is 38...Qxc3 39.Qxg6+ Kh8 40.Qxh5# 0–1
  • Start an analysis engine:
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WhiteEloWBlackEloBResYearECOEventRnd
Caruana,F2805Nakamura,H27950–12024B56Norway Chess Armageddon 20241.1
Ding,L2762Carlsen,M2830½–½2024A20Norway Chess Armageddon 20241.1
Praggnanandhaa R2747Firouzja,A27381–02024D02Norway Chess Armageddon 20241.1
Carlsen,M2830Nakamura,H27951–02024C70Norway Chess Armageddon 20242.1
Ding,L2762Praggnanandhaa R27471–02024A13Norway Chess Armageddon 20242.1
Firouzja,A2738Caruana,F28051–02024A06Norway Chess Armageddon 20242.1
Nakamura,H2795Firouzja,A27381–02024D12Norway Chess Armageddon 20243.1
Nakamura,H2795Caruana,F28050–12024E45Norway Chess Armageddon 20246.1
Firouzja,A2738Praggnanandhaa R27471–02024E11Norway Chess Armageddon 20246.1
Caruana,F2805Firouzja,A2738½–½2024C54Norway Chess Armageddon 20247.1
Nakamura,H2795Carlsen,M28301–02024D35Norway Chess Armageddon 20247.1
Praggnanandhaa R2747Ding,L27621–02024D00Norway Chess Armageddon 20247.1
Carlsen,M2830Praggnanandhaa R27471–02024D00Norway Chess Armageddon 20248.1
Ding,L2762Caruana,F2805½–½2024A14Norway Chess Armageddon 20248.1
Firouzja,A2738Nakamura,H27951–02024C54Norway Chess Armageddon 20248.1
Caruana,F2805Praggnanandhaa R27471–02024E36Norway Chess Armageddon 20249.1
Nakamura,H2795Ding,L27620–12024A17Norway Chess Armageddon 20249.1
Firouzja,A2738Carlsen,M28300–12024C54Norway Chess Armageddon 20249.1
Carlsen,M2830Caruana,F28051–02024E12Norway Chess Armageddon 202410.1
Ding,L2762Firouzja,A27380–12024A48Norway Chess Armageddon 202410.1
Praggnanandhaa R2747Nakamura,H27951–02024D02Norway Chess Armageddon 202410.1

Navigating the Ruy Lopez Vol.1-3

The Ruy Lopez is one of the oldest openings which continues to enjoy high popularity from club level to the absolute world top. In this video series, American super GM Fabiano Caruana, talking to IM Oliver Reeh, presents a complete repertoire for White.

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Carlos Colodro is a Hispanic Philologist from Bolivia. He works as a freelance translator and writer since 2012. A lot of his work is done in chess-related texts, as the game is one of his biggest interests, along with literature and music.
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