Calcutta: Indian grandmaster R. Praggnanandhaa stunned world No.3 Fabiano Caruana 3.5-2.5 via the tie-break in the semi-finals of the Fide World Cup chess tournament in Baku, Azerbaijan, on Monday.

After the two-game classical series ended 1-1, the 18-year-old Indian prodigy outlasted the highly-rated American grandmaster in a battle of wits in a nerve-wracking tie-breaker.

Praggnanandhaa will now take on Norway's Magnus Carlsen, the world No. 1, in the final.

Russia's Aleksandra Goryachkina was crowned the women's champion after she beat Bulgarian Nurgyul Salimova in the tie-break.

Praggnanandhaa, who withstood tremendous pressure from Caruana over three days, is looking forward to the clash with Carlsen. "I didn't expect to play Magnus in this tournament at all because the only way I could play him was in the final, and I didn't expect to be in the final… I will just try to give my best and see how it goes," Praggnanandhaa was quoted as saying by the International Chess Federation.

The win also assures him a berth in the prestigious Candidates tournament. The top three finishers in the World Cup qualify for the 2024 Candidates, which will be played to determine the challenger to Ding Liren, the reigning world champion. "It feels really good to qualify for the Candidates... I really wanted to fix this spot," Praagu said.

Praggnanandhaa becomes the third youngest player after the legendary Bobby Fischer and Carlsen to qualify for the Candidates tournament.

"Pragg goes through to the final... What a performance!," chess legend Viswanathan Anand posted on 'X', formerly Twitter, praising the Indian youngster.

In his run to the final, Praggnanandhaa has now defeated the world No. 2 (Hikaru Nakamura) and No. 3 (Caruana). Will he surprise the world No. 1 too?