FIDE Women's Grand Prix: Humpy dominates, Divya resilient, Vaishali outplayed by Jiner
Round 6 of the FIDE Women's Grand Prix 2024-25 at Amanora The Fern saw a dramatic shift in momentum as Indian Grandmaster Koneru Humpy scored a clinical win to stay within striking distance of the tournament leader, GM Zhu Jiner. While Humpy dazzled on board, Divya Deshmukh managed a draw against Dronavalli Harika, and Vaishali Rameshbabu suffered a tough defeat at the hands of the in form Chinese Grandmaster Zhu Jiner.
Playing with the Black pieces against Munguntuul Batkhuyag, Humpy played a game with great precision. The Indian veteran took advantage of a mistake Munguntuul made early on- the queen move on the 8th turn- in the Italian Opening. Humpy's knight's move on the 15th turn put her opponent in a tough place. She then launched a strong attack through the center and towards the king-side. Humpy gave up both her rooks to win a queen and a pawn, which gave her a clear advantage which turned the game in her favor.
With Munguntuul under severe time pressure- needing to make 21 moves in just 8 minutes- Humpy wrapped up the game in 33 moves, making an unstoppable checkmate. 'After the knight move on the 15th turn, White is positionally lost,' said Humpy post-match. The win takes her to 4.5 points, just half a point behind the leader Zhu Jiner.
Young Divya Deshmukh held fellow Indian GM Dronavalli Harika to a draw in a quiet English Opening. The game saw minimal exchanges and no real flash as both players agreed to a threefold repetition after 27 moves. With this result, Divya remains in a strong position with 4 points, while Harika trails down with 3.
Vaishali Rameshbabu, The third Indian in action, faced a tough challenge with Zhu Jiner, who entered the round as the tournament leader. Vaishali's Sicilian Defence held strong for much of the game until a wrong knight move on move 26 opened for Jiner to mount a decisive attack. Jiner's queen and knight coordination proved too strong, ending the game in 41 moves. As it stands Vaishali at 2.5 points, while Jiner maintains her sole lead with 5.
With just three rounds remaining in this 10-player round-robin event, the tournament is heating up. Round 7 promises high stakes as Humpy takes on Jiner with the White pieces- a potential title-deciding clash. Divya will face Munguntuul, also with White, looking to down on her opponent's poor form and push closer to the top.
As the Current Indian Standings after Round 6 stands -GM Koneru Humpy with 4.5 points, IM Divya Deshmukh with 4 points , GM Dronavalli Harika with 3 points followed by GM Vaishali Rameshbabu carrying 2.5 points. All eyes now turn to the key Round 7 encounters tomorrow.
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