R Praggnanandhaa with his mother Nagalakshmi.
Indian Grandmaster R Praggnanandhaa on Thursday defeated compatriot Arjun Erigaisi 5-4 in a sudden death tie-break to book a place for himself in the semifinals of the FIDE World Cup in Baku, Azerbaijan. At that moment, Nagalakshmi, his mother, was filled with emotion as her son became the second Indian, following Viswanathan Anand, to reach the semifinals of the prestigious tournament. Tears of joy rolled down the face of her mother as her son created history.
The photographers captured the emotional moments with their cameras, and these shots quickly gained immense popularity among the lovers of the board game.
In a widely circulated picture on social media, Nagalakshmi can be seen wearing a smile while standing next to her son, who was giving an interview.
In addition to that, another photograph captured Ms Nagalakshmi sitting alone and gently wiping away tears of happiness.
The stunning images garnered the interest of countless social media users who enthusiastically shared them, incorporating their own unique quotes and comments.
Talking about his mother Nagalakshmi watching his games live, Praggnanandhaa told ChessBase India, "It's definitely good to have someone here. My mother is always supportive! Even after losing games, she was just trying to calm me down. It's good to have someone rooting for you here, and for me, my mother is a big support-not only for me but for my sister as well."
Meanwhile, with the win, the 17-year-old Praggnanandhaa secured a spot in next year's Candidates event. The Indian prodigy will now face American ace Fabiano Caruana in the semi-final.
The top three in the tournament will qualify for the Candidates event in 2024 to determine the challenger to Ding Liren. With world no. 1 Magnus Carlsen not likely to play in the Candidates, Praggnanandhaa could be playing in the tournament to decide the challenger to reigning world champion Ding Liren.
The Chennai lad is going to be the only other Indian other than five-time world champion Viswanathan Anand to compete in the Candidates.
Praggnanandhaa received a bye in the first round before he went on to outclass Maxime Lagarde in the second round and David Navara in the third.