Chess Sensation: 9-Year-Old Indian Prodigy Holds Magnus Carlsen to Draw in Online Tournament

Chess Prodigy: Nine-Year-Old Aarit Kapil Draws Against Magnus Carlsen

In an astounding display of skill, nine-year-old Indian chess player Aarit Kapil managed to secure a draw against the world's top-ranked player, Magnus Carlsen, in the 'Early Titled Tuesday' online chess tournament.

Kapil, who recently achieved second place in the Under-9 National Championship, put immense pressure on the five-time world champion during their game. He even maneuvered Carlsen into a potentially losing position.

However, the young Indian player was unable to capitalize on his advantage due to time constraints. The game ultimately ended in a draw during a rook versus two minor pieces endgame.

The young chess talent from Delhi participated in the online tournament while in Georgia, where he is currently competing in the under-10 World Championship. He has started strong with two wins in the first two rounds and is set to continue his campaign on Wednesday.

While Kapil's draw against Carlsen was a highlight, Indian player V Pranav emerged as the victor of the 'Early Titled Tuesday' tournament, accumulating an impressive 10 points out of a possible 11.

American Grandmaster Hans Moke Niemann and Magnus Carlsen both scored 9.5 points, with Niemann securing second place based on tiebreak scores.

In other news, Magnus Carlsen recently achieved a remarkable milestone by reaching a 2900 rating in freestyle chess. This is the highest rating ever recorded in any chess format.

Carlsen has been the world number one player for nearly 15 years. His peak rating in classical chess was 2882, achieved in May 2014.

The freestyle chess ratings are now managed by the Freestyle Chess organization, which is separate from FIDE, the international governing body for chess.

Carlsen humorously commented on his new rating, stating that his wife, Ella Victoria, finds him "way more attractive" since he achieved the 2900 milestone.

The freestyle ratings calculation incorporated results from five tournaments: Weissenhaus 2024, Singapore 2024, Weissenhaus 2025, Paris 2025, and Karlsruhe 2025. The calculation included 578 players who participated in at least one of these events over the past two years.

Following Carlsen (2909), other top players in freestyle chess include Hikaru Nakamura (2818) and Fabiano Caruana (2804). Indian chess sensation Praggnanandhaa is currently ranked fourth with 2773 points.