Cyprus: It was a mixed day for India at the 2026 FIDE Candidates as R Praggnanandhaa suffered a setback in the Open section, while R Vaishali and Divya Deshmukh battled to hard-fought draws in the Women’s Candidates to remain within touching distance of the leaders.
Pragg falls to Sindarov after late errors
Playing with the white pieces, Praggnanandhaa went down to Uzbekistan’s Javokhir Sindarov in a tense and error-strewn encounter. The Indian teenager was knocked out of his opening preparation early when Sindarov opted for an uncommon line in the Queen’s Gambit Declined, forcing Pragg to spend significant time at the board.
The middle game saw the Indian sacrifice a pawn in search of long-term compensation, but mounting time pressure proved costly. Sindarov maintained central pressure and capitalised on back-to-back inaccuracies from Praggnanandhaa in the early 30s moves, converting his advantage and forcing resignation on move 40.
With the win, Sindarov moved into the joint lead alongside Fabiano Caruana, who defeated Wei Yi. Praggnanandhaa slipped to third place, a point off the pace, level with Matthias Blübaum. Draws were recorded in the other games, including entertaining contests between Hikaru Nakamura and Anish Giri, and Blübaum versus Andrey Esipenko.
Vaishali continues solid run
In the Women’s Candidates, Vaishali registered her third consecutive draw, this time against former world championship challenger Anna Muzychuk. Opting for the Italian Game, the Indian enjoyed a slight edge early on but could not break through as both players maintained high accuracy. The game concluded peacefully after 41 moves.
Divya holds firm in marathon battle
Divya Deshmukh also settled for a draw against another former title challenger, Aleksandra Goryachkina. Playing black in a Sicilian Defence, Divya found herself under sustained pressure and a pawn down in the middle game. However, she defended resiliently and steered the contest to a draw after a gruelling 81-move struggle.
Both Indians remain one point behind the leaders, with Kateryna Lagno and Bibisara Assaubayeva moving ahead after wins over Tan Zhongyi and Zhu Jiner respectively.
Round 4 promises key matchups, with Praggnanandhaa set to play black against Blübaum, while Vaishali and Divya will both have white pieces as they aim to convert steady starts into decisive results.
Source: ESPN
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