R Vaishali faced a major setback against Jiner Zhu on Sunday, leaving the Women’s Candidates tournament wide open with just two rounds remaining. The tournament will decide the next challenger to reigning world champion Ju Wenjun.
CANDIDATES 2026: FULL COVERAGE
Playing with the white pieces, Vaishali had a chance to take sole control of the standings with a draw after a good run in the campaign. However, her aggressive approach to secure a win backfired. Both of her defeats in the event have been against Zhu. Vaishali and Zhu now share the lead with 7 points each from 12 games. Meanwhile, Anna Muzychuk missed a crucial opportunity after a costly mistake allowed Aleksandra Goryachkina to secure a draw in a tightly contested match.
Bibisara Assaubayeva dealt a blow to Russian hopes by defeating Kateryna Lagno in a strong performance. The Kazakh player is now just half a point behind the joint leaders, remaining firmly in contention as the tournament approaches its final stages.
India’s Divya Deshmukh lost to Tan Zhongyi, effectively ending the podium hopes for both players in the Women’s Candidates event. In the Open section, Javokhir Sindarov maintained his dominant form, securing a comfortable draw with world No. 2 Hikaru Nakamura while playing white.
With 9 points from 12 games, Sindarov is close to achieving one of the most commanding victories in Candidates tournament history. India’s R Praggnanandhaa also settled for a draw against Andrey Esipenko, a result that diminished his chances. While some opportunity remains, Praggnanandhaa may need to regroup and aim for a stronger performance in the next cycle.
CANDIDATES 2026: ROUND 12 RESULTS
Results round 12: Andrey Esipenko (Rus, 4.5 drew with R Praggnanandhaa (Ind, 5); Matthias BLuebaum (Ger, 5) drew with Fabiano Caruana (Usa, 6);); Hikaru Nakamura (Usa, 5) drew with Javokhir SIndarov (Uzb, 9) Wei Yi (Chn, 5) playing Anish Giri (Ned, 6.5).
Women: Aleksandra Goryachkina (Rus, 5.5) drew with Anna Muzychuk (Ukr, 6.5); R Vaishali (Ind, 7) lost to Jiner Zhu (Chn, 7): BIbisara Assaubayeva (Kaz, 6.5) beat Kateryna Lagno (Rus, 5.5); Zhongyi Tan (Chn, 5) beat Divya Deshmukh (Ind, 5).
– Ends
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