Humpy in sole lead after Rd 8

NEW DELHI, FEBRUARY 16

Indian Grandmaster Koneru Humpy defeated Valentina Gunina of Russia in the eighth round of the Cairns Cup, jumping into sole lead with 5.5 points, with one round to play. In a huge upset, 16-year-old American Carissa Yip stunned world champion Wenjun Ju in a 61-move game, taking her tally to 3.5 points. Harika Dronavalli was held to a third consecutive draw, this time by former world champion Mariya Muzychuk. Harika now has four points and is joint fifth with Kateryna Lagno.

Humpy vs Harika

Interestingly, Humpy will meet Harika in the final round, with the former in with a chance to claim the top prize. In the Humpy-Gunina game, the Indian opted for Semi-Slav and outplayed her rival in 35 moves to record her fourth win of the tournament. Local star Irina Krush played out a draw against Lagno.

Vidit Gujrathi keeps lead

Prague: Vidit Gujrathi continued to lead the standings in the masters category of the Prague Chess Festival after sharing a point with Swedish Grandmaster Nils Grandelius in the fourth round. P Harikrishna held Sam Shankland of the USA to a draw after suffering a defeat in Round 3. — PTI