Women’s Candidates: R Vaishali falters as title battle takes dramatic turn

R Vaishali’s title charge hit a major roadblock on Sunday as she went down to Jiner Zhu in Round 12 of the Women’s Candidates, throwing the tournament wide open with just two rounds remaining.

The event will determine the next challenger to world champion Ju Wenjun. Armed with the white pieces, Vaishali needed only a draw to move into sole lead after a strong run through the tournament. But in trying to press for a win, she overreached—allowing Zhu to capitalise and inflict her second defeat of the event.

The result leaves Vaishali and Zhu tied at the top on seven points from 12 games, setting up a tense finish. Anna Muzychuk missed a key chance to join them at the summit after letting Aleksandra Goryachkina escape with a draw from a difficult position.

Bibisara Assaubayeva stayed firmly in the hunt, defeating Kateryna Lagno to move to 6.5 points—just half a point behind the leaders. It was a disappointing round for India elsewhere as Divya Deshmukh lost to Tan Zhongyi, ending both players’ podium hopes.

Open section

Javokhir Sindarov continued his dominant run, holding world No. 2 Hikaru Nakamura to a comfortable draw with white.

With nine points from 12 rounds, Sindarov is now within touching distance of one of the most commanding Candidates wins in recent history.

India’s R Praggnanandhaa drew with Andrey Esipenko, a result that further dented his chances. While mathematically alive, he now faces a steep climb in the final rounds.

Round 12 results

Open:
Esipenko (4.5) drew with Praggnanandhaa (5);
Matthias Blübaum (5) drew with Fabiano Caruana (6);
Nakamura (5) drew with Sindarov (9);
Wei Yi (5) vs Anish Giri (6.5).

Women:
Goryachkina (5.5) drew with Muzychuk (6.5);
Vaishali (7) lost to Zhu (7);
Assaubayeva (6.5) beat Lagno (5.5);
Tan Zhongyi (5) beat Divya (5).