{"id":11488,"date":"2026-04-10T09:16:17","date_gmt":"2026-04-10T02:16:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/?p=11488"},"modified":"2026-04-10T09:16:19","modified_gmt":"2026-04-10T02:16:19","slug":"sindarov-and-vaishali-atop-the-leaderboard","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/sindarov-and-vaishali-atop-the-leaderboard\/","title":{"rendered":"Sindarov and Vaishali atop the leaderboard"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Javokhir Sindarov took a major step toward glory at the Cyprus FIDE Candidates, defeating R Praggnanandhaa in a striking game. With only four rounds remaining, Sindarov now leads the field by a full two points.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the Women\u2019s Tournament, Praggnanandhaa’s sister R Vaishali remains in the lead, but Bibisara Assaubayeva and Aleksandra Goryachkina have re-entered contention following their Round 10 victories.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sindarov chose to challenge his opponent\u2019s preparation in a highly complex and dangerous line of the Queen\u2019s Gambit. Reflecting on the decision afterward, he admitted: \u201cI went into a very tricky position. Probably it wasn\u2019t such a good idea to play like this in my situation.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Praggnanandhaa managed to win a piece in exchange for two pawns, but Sindarov seized the initiative and launched a dangerous attack. The critical moment arose on move 22: although Black had a piece for two pawns, his king was exposed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/pre>\n\n\n\n
As Sindarov demonstrated after the game, Black\u2019s best chance was 22\u2026Be6. After 23. Rf6 Qh7! 24. Qxh7+ Kxh7 25. Rxh6+ Kxh6 26. Rf6+ Kg5 27. Rxe6 Rd8!, White would retain only a slight edge, with a draw the most likely outcome.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Instead, Praggnanandhaa played 22\u2026Bd7?, and after 23. Rf7! Qxf7 24. Rxf7 Kxf7 25. Qf4+! Kg7 26. Qg5+! Kh7 27. Qe7+!, Sindarov decisively picked up the bishop on d7 and converted the position with ease.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In the post-game press conference, Sindarov remained composed: \u201cI think I am very close, but I still have two important games with Black. I\u2019m just trying not to think about it and to play good chess as always.\u201d He also shared his coach\u2019s advice: \u201cIf I deserve the title, I will get it, so don\u2019t think about the result. And if I don\u2019t, we will keep working toward it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Beating Praggnanandhaa is no small feat. Praggnanandhaa is known for his resilience and preparation, so a decisive win suggests Sindarov is not just leading, but doing so with real authority.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A two-point lead with four rounds remaining is massive in a Candidates tournament; at this level, even a one-point cushion is often decisive. If Sindarov maintains composure, he\u2019s now the clear favourite to win the event and potentially earn a shot at the World Championship.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The other three games ended in remarkably solid draws, with accuracy levels nearing 98% and virtually no mistakes: an afternoon of near-perfect chess.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Anish Giri and Hikaru Nakamura opted for a fashionable Exchange Variation of the Queen\u2019s Gambit. Giri managed to secure a slight initiative, but Nakamura defended precisely and neutralized any real chances.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Andrey Esipenko failed to generate anything tangible with White against Matthias Bluebaum\u2019s reliable Petroff Defence. After a series of exchanges, the game quickly simplified into a symmetrical position, and a draw was agreed without much fuss.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In the third game, Wei Yi tested the 4.Nge2 line against Fabiano Caruana\u2019s French Winawer. Although Wei Yi obtained a slight edge thanks to the bishop pair in a queenless middlegame, Caruana\u2019s defensive technique was impeccable, and the point was eventually shared.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
On the women\u2019s side, the tournament remains far more dynamic. Vaishali\u2019s hold on the lead is impressive, but with Bibisara Assaubayeva and Aleksandra Goryachkina closing in after their victories, the race is very much alive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Goryachkina, in particular, brings a wealth of top-level experience \u2013 including a Women\u2019s World Championship match \u2013 and is always a serious threat in the closing stages of an event.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Vaishali comfortably held Anna Muzychuk to a draw with the black pieces, in a game that featured flawless play from both sides, without a single inaccuracy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Meanwhile, Kateryna Lagno did manage to obtain a slight edge against Tan Zhongyi, who surprised with the offbeat O\u2019Kelly Sicilian. However, Lagno misplayed a tricky endgame, allowing Tan Zhongyi to once again demonstrate her excellent defensive technique and secure the draw.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The two games producing decisive outcomes followed very different trajectories. The encounter between Divya Deshmukh and Aleksandra Goryachkina had been balanced for most of the game, but around move sixty, already under time pressure, Divya committed a critical endgame mistake and paid a heavy price.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Goryachkina was understandably delighted to score her first win of the tournament and was all smiles in her interview afterward: \u201cI can\u2019t remember a tournament in which I haven\u2019t won at least one game in the first nine rounds. I\u2019m happy to be winning again,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Another key result of the day was Bibisara Assaubayeva\u2019s victory over Zhu Jiner, who had started the round as co-leader. The game remained roughly balanced for a long time, but as the time control approached, Zhu Jiner chose an inaccurate plan, and her position quickly began to deteriorate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
After a relatively quiet stretch, Assaubayeva now appears to be regaining momentum and could well emerge as a serious late contender if she manages to string together a few more wins.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Standings after Round 10 <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Javokhir Sindarov took a major step toward glory at the Cyprus FIDE Candidates, defeating R Praggnanandhaa in a<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":11489,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[39],"class_list":["post-11488","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-newsbeat","tag-chess"],"aioseo_notices":[],"featured_image_urls":{"full":["https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/C-D10-Muzychuk-Vaishali.jpg",1200,779,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/C-D10-Muzychuk-Vaishali-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/C-D10-Muzychuk-Vaishali-300x195.jpg",300,195,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/C-D10-Muzychuk-Vaishali-768x499.jpg",640,416,true],"large":["https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/C-D10-Muzychuk-Vaishali-1024x665.jpg",640,416,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/C-D10-Muzychuk-Vaishali.jpg",1200,779,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/C-D10-Muzychuk-Vaishali.jpg",1200,779,false],"morenews-large":["https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/C-D10-Muzychuk-Vaishali-825x575.jpg",825,575,true],"morenews-medium":["https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/C-D10-Muzychuk-Vaishali-590x410.jpg",590,410,true]},"author_info":{"info":["admin"]},"category_info":"Newsbeat<\/a>","tag_info":"Newsbeat","comment_count":"0","jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/C-D10-Muzychuk-Vaishali.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11488","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=11488"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11488\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":11490,"href":"https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11488\/revisions\/11490"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/11489"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11488"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=11488"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=11488"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}