Javokhir Sindarov stuns R Praggnanandhaa Women’s race tightens

Javokhir Sindarov moved a step closer to glory at the Cyprus FIDE Candidates after defeating R Praggnanandhaa in a high-quality and dramatic encounter. He now leads the standings by two points with four rounds still to play. The win has placed him in a commanding position in the tournament.

In the Women’s Candidates event, the race intensified as Vaishali Rameshbabu continues to top the table. However, Bibisara Assaubayeva and Aleksandra Goryachkina strengthened their challenge with important Round 10 victories. The standings have tightened significantly as the event heads into its final phase.

The round began with a ceremonial first move performed by former World Championship contender Boris Gelfand on Sindarov’s board. He was joined at the venue by former World Champion Viswanathan Anand. Their presence added prestige to the playing hall at the Cap St. Georges Hotel & Resort in Cyprus.

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Sindarov leads after win; Women’s race tightens

Commentators Jan Gustafsson and Peter Svidler analyzed the opening phase and predicted a complex day of results. Svidler expected Sindarov to remain comfortable at the top while the women’s section stayed highly unpredictable. The day’s results closely matched that assessment with both stability and surprises across boards.

Sindarov chose a sharp line in the Queen’s Gambit and entered a complicated middlegame against Praggnanandhaa. Although Praggnanandhaa won material, Sindarov created strong attacking chances and seized the initiative. A key mistake on move 22 allowed Sindarov to launch a decisive tactical sequence and convert his advantage.

Several other games in the Open section ended in calm draws with high accuracy levels. Anish Giri drew a balanced game against Hikaru Nakamura, while Fabiano Caruana held steady against Wei Yi. Andrey Esipenko also shared the point with Matthias Bluebaum.

In the Women’s section, Aleksandra Goryachkina and Bibisara Assaubayeva secured important wins to stay in contention. Divya Deshmukh and Zhu Jiner also featured in key results as the battle intensified. With momentum shifting quickly, the Candidates tournaments remain wide open heading into the final rounds.

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