Indian Grandmaster Tops Candidates Chess Tournament

Indian Grandmaster R. Vaishali has jointly taken the top spot in the Women’s category of the Candidates Chess Tournament. In the 13th round held on Tuesday, Vaishali secured a draw against Tan Zhongyi of China. Meanwhile, Divya Deshmukh continued her poor run, suffering a defeat against Kateryna Lagno. After 13 rounds, Vaishali and Bibisara Assaubayeva are tied at the top with 7.5 points each, keeping the title race wide open, while Divya stands at the eighth position with 5 points.

In the Open category, R Praggnanandhaa played out a draw against Fabiano Caruana. However, Uzbekistan’s Grandmaster Javokhir Sindarov clinched the title with one round to spare, leading with 9.5 points after 13 rounds. Praggnanandhaa is placed seventh with 5.5 points. With this victory, the 20-year-old Sindarov is set to challenge defending world champion D Gukesh in the World Championship later this year.