R Vaishali secures spot at FIDE women's Candidates 2024

Published at :November 6, 2023 at 10:11 AM

Modified at :January 14, 2024 at 12:58 AM

(Courtesy : The Statesman)

She is on the verge of becoming a grandmaster.

At the FIDE Grand Swiss 2023, International Master R. Vaishali achieved a remarkable feat by defeating former world champion and Grandmaster Tan Zhongyi on Saturday (November 4th). This victory propelled her to claim a half-point lead atop the leaderboard.

Vaishali’s outstanding performance secured her early qualification for the 2024 FIDE Candidates, making her a historic figure in the chess world. Further she drew in the final round against Mongolia’s Batkhuyag Munguntuul to claim the FIDE Grand Swiss 2023.

IM Vaishali R (2448) had not previously secured a rated victory against GM Zhongyi Tan (CHN, 2517). Their initial encounter ended in a draw at the Astana GP in the previous year, followed by a loss for Vaishali at the 19th Asian Games 2022 last month.

However, in the peak of her career form, she has now achieved a significant triumph against a former Women’s World Champion, marking her fifth win across Classical, Rapid, and Blitz formats in chess.

She becomes only the second Indian female chess player to qualify for the women’s Candidates tournament, after Koneru Humpy. Humpy went as far as the Women’s World Championship final, in 2011, which she lost to China’s Hou Yifan.

Previously, Grandmaster R Praggnanandhaa secured a spot in the 2024 Candidates after earning a silver medal at the FIDE World Cup in August. Notably, he joined the elite ranks as the third youngest player ever to qualify for this prestigious tournament, following the likes of Bobby Fischer and Carlsen.

Indian Sports Live Coverage on Khel Now

With Vaishali’s remarkable display at the Grand Swiss, they achieved a historic milestone as the first sibling duo to simultaneously qualify for both the men’s and women’s Candidates tournaments.

Furthermore, her triumph served as an instructive example of effective play against an exposed king in the center of the board. Vaishali’s remarkable performance puts her in a position to potentially attain a Grandmaster title. She has a live rating of 2497.1 and is on the verge of becoming India’s third grandmaster after Koneru Humpy and Harika Dronavalli.

“The grandmaster title has been a big dream for me since my childhood,” said Vaishali.