“I don’t think playing Magnus in his home turf is a challenge for me” - R Praggnanandhaa ahead of Norway Chess tournament 

Indian Grandmaster R Praggnanandhaa remains unfazed and focused ahead of taking on world champion Magnus Carlsen in the Norway Chess competition, scheduled to start on Monday, May 27.

Praggnanandhaa has defeated Carlsen on several occasions in the last few years. He most recently defeated Carlsen in the Superbet rapid and blitz tournament during the Grand Chess Tour in Warsaw earlier this month.

He asserted that he isn't feeling any pressure going into the contest.

“I don’t think playing Magnus in his home turf is a challenge for me. Usually, it matters to the player playing in his home but it won’t matter so much for me,” said Praggnanandhaa in a Norway Chess release.

Praggnanandhaa will be accompanied by his sister R. Vaishali in the Norway Chess tournament for the first time. Koneru Humpy is also competing at the Norway Chess tournament in the women's category.

The 11-day Norway Chess competition will witness a lot of in-form and strong players, including the reigning world champion Ding Liren and five-time US chess champion Hikaru Nakamura.

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“I am quite excited to play him and equally excited to play the others” - R Praggnanandhaa

The Indian Grandmaster had his say on the contest with Magnus Carlsen at the FIDE World Cup last year where the Indian gave a tough fight to the Norwegian. R Praggnanandhaa emphasized that the experience in Norway Chess would help him to do well in future tournaments.

“I always enjoy a good challenge. After the World Cup last year, this will be my first classical game with him. I am quite excited to play him and equally excited to play the others. No doubt the experience here will help me in future tournaments,” said Praggnanandhaa.

The Norway Chess tournament will be played in a double round-robin format with a time control of 120 minutes.

Norway Chess - A look at the participants

Men: Magnus Carlsen (Norway), Fabiano Caruana (USA), Hikaru Nakamura (USA), Ding Liren (China), 5. Alireza Firouzja (France), and R Praggnanandhaa (India).

Women: Koneru Humpy (India), Lei Tingjie (China), Ju Wenjun (China), Anna Muzychuk (Ukraine), R Vaishali (India), and Pia Cramling (Sweden).