In the second round, Alireza Firouzja continued his sensational form at Norway Chess 2026 with a win over R Praggnanandhaa to extend his streak of classical wins to two games and a 3.5-point advantage at the top of the standings.
Firouzja stunned the World No.1 Magnus Carlsen in a classic match in the first round, and he kept up his impressive form. That time around, the French grandmaster outplayed Praggnanandhaa with classical time control, establishing his supremacy from the get-go.
The win follows Firouzja make his exit from the Super Chess Classic Romania this season after several questions were raised about his form and preparation. The Maple Leafs 22-year-old, however, has been pretty solid when he gets onto the board, as he has won both of his two matches with top-level competition so far.
Classical play in the Open section was all of which produced Armageddon tiebreaker games, with the exception of Firouzja’s victory. Magnus Carlsen mowed down Vincent Keymer in Armageddon, and reigning World Champion D Gukesh was beaten by Wesley So.
In the Women’s category, Bibisara Assaubayeva kept her standard form by beating Zhu Jiner in Armageddon. The Indian player Divya Deshmukh also completed the second such Armageddon round in a row as she continued with her sweet shooting.
After the first two rounds, Firouzja is in the lead and looks set to continue the winning streak, even in the face of very strong competition. The third round of Norway Chess 27 will start on 27 May at 5.30 PM CEST (8.30 PM IST).