Vaishali Rameshbabu from India is set to enter the final round of the Women’s Candidates tournament on Wednesday, sharing the lead with Kazakh grandmaster Bibisara Assaubayeva after a thrilling day in Cyprus. Both players have accumulated 7.5 points, creating an intriguing scenario for the concluding round. Close behind them, at 7 points, is the young Chinese talent Zhu Jiner.

In her previous match, Vaishali faced a draw against former women’s world champion Tan Zhongyi of China. As she exited the playing hall on Tuesday, she may have felt her aspirations for winning the Women’s Candidates were dwindling, especially since Zhu Jiner was in a favorable position against Aleksandra Goryachkina. However, under pressure, Zhu faltered, inadvertently giving the 24-year-old Vaishali a renewed opportunity to vie for a place in the Women’s World Chess Championship against Ju Wenjun. Meanwhile, Bibisara Assaubayeva secured her spot at the top by overcoming Anna Muzychuk.

On Wednesday, for Vaishali to clinch victory, she must triumph over Kateryna Lagno, while also relying on her teammate from the Chess Olympiad, Divya Deshmukh, to defeat Bibisara in their match. Zhu could potentially win the tournament as well if she secures a victory in her final round, assuming both Vaishali and Bibisara lose their respective games. Goryachkina, Lagno, and Muzychuk trail closely, each with 6.5 points.

Although Divya currently sits at the bottom of the standings, she has previously achieved one of her two wins in the Candidates against Bibisara. However, she has faced challenges recently, suffering four defeats in her last five rounds, indicative of her current form, including a loss to Lagno on Tuesday.

Tuesdays’ outcomes mark the fifth consecutive round in which Vaishali has maintained her position at the forefront. After round 8, an unprecedented five players were tied for the lead. By round 9, Vaishali was sharing the top spot with Zhu, and after Round 10, she briefly held the sole lead of the tournament until losing to Zhu Jiner in Round 12, which brought her back to a shared lead.

In the open Candidates event, Praggnanandhaa faced a draw against Fabiano Caruana, remaining in seventh place. Throughout the tournament, the Indian prodigy has managed to secure only one victory, which came against Anish Giri in the first round.

The FIDE Women’s Candidates standings after Round 13 are as follows: 1-2 Assaubayeva and Vaishali with 7.5 points, 3 Zhu Jiner with 7 points, 4-6 Goryachkina, Lagno, and Muzychuk each with 6.5 points, 7 Tan Zhongyi with 5.5 points, and 8 Divya with 5 points.

For the open Candidates, the standings are: 1 Sindarov with 9.5 points, 2 Giri with 7.5 points, 3-4 Caruana and Wei Yi with 6.5 points, 5-6 Bluebaum and Nakamura with 6 points, 7 Praggnanandhaa with 5.5 points, and 8 Esipenko with 4.5 points.

Amit Kamath serves as the Assistant Editor at The Indian Express, located in Mumbai. He focuses primarily on chess and Olympic sports and is a co-host of the Game Time podcast, a weekly segment from Express Sports. Additionally, he writes a chess column titled “On The Moves.”