Norway Chess 2026: Gukesh, Divya and Praggnanandhaa shine in dramatic opener

OSLO: Divya Deshmukh indirectly helped R Vaishali win the Women’s World Championship Candidates tournament by drawing with Bibisara Assaubayeva in the last round in Cyprus last month. On Monday, she may have helped Vaishali again by beating reigning women’s world champion Ju Wenjun in an Armageddon game in the opening round of Norway Chess here.

The 35-year-old Chinese, who will defend her crown against Vaishali early next year, wasted a good chance to beat Divya in the classical phase before Women’s World Cup winner Divya outplayed her in the Armageddon with black pieces.
Wenjun failed to spot a welldisguised attack on her unprotected queen with a knight-check from the 20-year-old and resigned.




Gukesh pumps his fist again
D Gukesh gave another fist pump. But this time not over the board. The Indian defeated GCT Romania classical leg winner Vincent Keymer of Germany in the Armageddon. After coming out of the playing hall, he gave an intense and happy look to his Polish coach Grzegorz Gajewski and celebrated by raising his fist. The reigning World Champion had the edge in the classical game that lasted 145 moves.

Gukesh displayed great resistance in the queen endgame with the German having a solitary pawn. The Indian rightfully claimed a draw via a 50-move rule (neither pawn-push nor capture for 50 consecutive moves) on the second time, after prematurely doing it earlier.

Humpy loses against Bibisara

Numero uno Magnus Carlsen and India’s K Humpy were the only players to lose their classical games on the day.
Bibisara of Kazakhstan put tremendous pressure on Humpy and the Indian missed the only defensive option with an erroneous king move. Alireza, who sprained his ankle at the GCT Romania meet, arrived on a wheelchair and rested his leg on another chair. He shook Carlsen’s throne slightly.

R Praggnanandhaa defeated Wesley So with white pieces in the Armageddon.

(The journalist is in Oslo on the invitation of Norway Chess)