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

In a stunning turn of events, nine-year-old Indian chess player Aarit Kapil achieved a remarkable draw against world number one Magnus Carlsen in the 'Early Titled Tuesday' online chess tournament.

Magnus Carlsen (Photo by Dean Mouhtaropoulos/Getty Images)

Kapil, a recent runner-up in the Under-9 National Championship, not only challenged but dominated the game against the five-time world champion, even placing Carlsen in a potentially losing position.

However, the young Indian player was unable to fully capitalize on his advantage due to time constraints. This resulted in a draw during the endgame, which featured a rook versus two minor pieces.

The talented player from Delhi participated in the online tournament while in Georgia, where he is currently competing in the under-10 World Championship. He has secured victories in his initial two rounds and is set to continue his journey with the third game on Wednesday.

In related news from the same tournament, Indian player V Pranav emerged as the champion of the 'Early Titled Tuesday' event, accumulating an impressive 10 points out of a possible 11.

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

Carlsen's Freestyle Chess Milestone

Separately, Magnus Carlsen recently reached a historic milestone of a 2900 rating in freestyle chess. This achievement is unprecedented in any format of the game.

Carlsen, who has maintained his position as the world's top-ranked player for nearly 15 years, had previously achieved a peak classical chess rating of 2882 in May 2014.

The freestyle chess ratings are now managed by the Freestyle Chess organization, which operates independently from FIDE, the global governing body for chess.

"My wife (Ella Victoria) is way more attracted to me now that I've achieved 2900," Carlsen jokingly remarked to Freestyle Chess after learning of his new rating.

The freestyle ratings calculation encompassed five tournaments: Weissenhaus 2024, Singapore 2024, Weissenhaus 2025, Paris 2025, and Karlsruhe 2025. These events featured 578 players who participated in at least one tournament over the course of two years.

Another Indian chess prodigy, Praggnanandhaa, currently holds the fourth position in the freestyle chess rankings with 2773 points. He trails behind Carlsen (2909), Hikaru Nakamura (2818), and Fabiano Caruana (2804).