Ahead of the 2026 Norway Chess event, now in its 14th edition, few would have predicted that at the midpoint, world champion D Gukesh and top-ranked Magnus Carlsen would sit near the bottom of the standings. Yet with three rounds left at the Deichman Bjørvika Library in Oslo, both remain out of title contention.
In round 7, Indian players recovered from prior losses. R Praggnanandhaa delivered a strong win with white against Firouzja. He built a solid position in a quiet opening, then gained queenside pawns and used active pieces to create threats. After complications around move 35, his centralized forces prevailed, handing Firouzja a second straight classical defeat.
Divya Deshmukh faced Koneru Humpy in an all-Indian matchup that went to an Armageddon tie-break. With black, Divya accepted a gambit, traded queens, and converted a favorable endgame with precise checks that exposed the white king. The win kept her second in the women’s section, 2.5 points behind leader Bibisara Assaubayeva.
Carlsen defeated Keymer in an Armageddon playoff after a difficult classical result. Gukesh drew his classical game but beat Wesley So in the tie-break. In the women’s event, Bibisara Assaubayeva won classically against Zhu Jiner, while Anna Muzychuk defeated Ju Wenjun.
