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Three decisive games marked round twelve of the Women's Candidates Tournament, bringing a significant tightening at the top of the standings.
Zhu Jiner defeated Vaishali Rameshbabu to draw level in first place on 7 points, while Bibisara Assaubayeva moved to within half a point of the leaders after overcoming Kateryna Lagno. Tan Zhongyi also scored her first win of the event, beating Divya Deshmukh. The only draw of the round came in the game between Anna Muzychuk and Aleksandra Goryachkina, where a winning position slipped away late in a rook endgame.
Round 12 results
The game between Vaishali Rameshbabu and Zhu Jiner carried major tournament implications. Vaishali steered the opening into less common territory, accepting doubled pawns in return for dynamic chances. However, Zhu responded with a clear plan, emerging from the opening with a comfortable and easy-to-handle position.
As the middlegame unfolded, Black's position appeared more straightforward to play, and this was compounded by a growing advantage on the clock as the players approached move 40. Under increasing pressure, Vaishali's position began to deteriorate, and Zhu converted her advantage convincingly.
The result lifted Zhu into a share of the lead, underlining her resilience after earlier missed opportunities. The Chinese star, who entered the event as top seed, has now drawn only four games in the event and has re-established herself as one of the main contenders.
The all-important clash between Vaishali Rameshbabu and Tan Zhongyi, the co-leaders going into the final two rounds | Photo: FIDE / Michal Walusza
Anna Muzychuk came close to joining the leaders but was held to a draw by Aleksandra Goryachkina in a game that saw a dramatic reversal at the late stage. The position had long appeared to be heading towards a decisive result in Muzychuk's favour.
In a rook endgame where Muzychuk was a pawn up, she capitalised on earlier inaccuracies by Goryachkina and found a series of precise moves to maintain her advantage. After the time control, she consistently kept control and progressed towards what seemed a technically winning position.
In the final phase, her task was reduced to eliminating the remaining black pawns, with the only practical difficulty being severe time pressure. With just seconds remaining on the clock, however, she made a single inaccurate move that allowed Goryachkina to force a stalemate.
Instead of joining the leaders, Muzychuk remains half a point behind, still very much in contention.
Aleksandra Goryachkina escaped with a draw | Photo: FIDE / Niki Riga
Bibisara Assaubayeva's win over Kateryna Lagno came in a highly complex game with multiple turning points. Assaubayeva chose an ambitious setup in the Italian Opening, involving an early pawn sacrifice, although Lagno declined to accept it. Later, White gave up a pawn in order to gain space on the kingside, while her own king was exposed.
The position became double-edged, and at one stage Lagno appeared to have a winning advantage. However, under time pressure, she failed to find the most accurate continuation. Twice she overlooked the same decisive resource for White, allowing Assaubayeva to turn the game around. When the opportunity arose for a second time, Assaubayeva found the key breakthrough with e6-e7, after which the position quickly collapsed for Black.
The victory marked Assaubayeva's first classical win against Lagno and brought her back firmly into the race after a difficult stretch earlier in the tournament.
Still in contention - Bibisara Assaubayeva | Photo: FIDE / Michal Walusza
Tan Zhongyi's victory over Divya Deshmukh was more controlled in nature and marked her first win of the event. The game developed around a favourable transformation of the central pawn structure, after which Tan focused on applying sustained pressure against backward pawns on the e and g-files.
Tan gradually improved her position, coordinating her pieces and even bringing her king across the board to maximise pressure. Deshmukh, who had been among the leaders earlier in the tournament, struggled to cope with the accumulating pressure.
The decisive moment came with a well-timed pawn advance that opened lines on the kingside, leaving Desmukh's position beyond repair.
The result leaves both players on five points, with Tan no longer without a win, while Deshmukh continues to endure a difficult second half.
Tan Zhongyi | Photo: FIDE / Niki Riga
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