R. Vaishali will always remember how her stunning victory over Tan Zhongyi in the Grand Swiss last year ensured her spot in the FIDE Women’s Candidates.
But on Thursday, the Chinese avenged that loss to make it one of the most forgettable days for the siblings Vaishali and her younger brother R. Praggnanandhaa, who too, ended up on the losing side in the Open section.
Tan, who began her campaign with an impressive victory over compatriot and defending champion Lie Tingjie, is the only player with a perfect score and hence, a worthy leader.
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Koneru Humpy drew with black pieces against old rival Kateryna Lagno. In a battle involving the champion and the runner-up of the 2019 FIDE Women’s Candidates, top seed Aleksandra Goryachkina scored an important victory over Anna Muzychuk. Defending champion Lie Tingjie opened her account with a steady draw with lowest seed Nurguyl Salimova.
Vaishali, seeded seven in a field of eight players, kept up with Tan for the better part of the game from the black side. However, the choice to move one of her knights to the peaceful queenside gave Tan an opportunity to expedite her attack on the black’s castled king.
In serious danger, Vaishali declined a pawn-capture on the kingside but the decision instantly backfired. Tan sacrificed a knight and looked to land the knockout punch when Vaishali gave up.
The Lagno-Humpy battle witnessed a series of exchanges leading to an endgame with queen and pawns. Lagno chose to draw the game through perpetual checks.
Goryachkina gained from Muzychuk’s decision to not recapture a knight and soon ended up with an extra minor piece on the board. Till then Muzychuk proved equal to the challenge but one miscalculation cost her an important point.
Meanwhile, Salimova continued to impress. The surprise entry into the Candidates following her stunning performance in the World Cup last year, Salimova came up with another solid performance to hold Lie in a game that saw exchanges galore. Eventually, in a rook-and-pawn endgame draw was agreed following perpetual checks.
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