Women's Candidates R3: Lagno and Assaubayeva win rollercoaster games

by Carlos Alberto Colodro
4/1/2026 – Two decisive games in round three of the Women's Candidates Tournament saw Bibisara Assaubayeva and Kateryna Lagno move into the lead. Assaubayeva capitalised on tactical complications to defeat Zhu Jiner, who had again obtained a promising position, while Lagno overcame Tan Zhongyi after a wild encounter featuring a number of blunders and tactical shots. Aleksandra Goryachkina pressed throughout but could not convert against Divya Deshmukh, while Vaishali Rameshbabu's game against Anna Muzychuk ended in a controlled draw. | Photo: FIDE / Yoav Nis
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The first two decisive games of the event

Round three of the Women's Candidates produced the first decisive results of the event, with wins by Bibisara Assaubayeva and Kateryna Lagno leaving them as co-leaders. After two rounds in which several chances went unconverted, the event finally saw two games ending decisively. Out of the two draws, the game between Vaishali Rameshbabu and Anna Muzychuk remained comparatively quiet and ended peacefully in 41 moves.

The longest game of the round saw Aleksandra Goryachkina press for victory against Divya Deshmukh in a game that lasted 81 moves. Goryachkina gradually took control as a series of decisions by Deshmukh - including an early forced exchange of minor pieces, declining a queen trade when offered and later simplifying into a heavy-piece endgame - left her with an increasingly difficult position. Goryachkina eventually reached a rook endgame a pawn up that appeared winning in principle, but converting the advantage proved far from straightforward.

As the endgame progressed, the position became less clear, and at one stage Goryachkina even found herself in a worse position before the game simplified to bare kings and a draw. Both players thus remain on an even score after three rounds.

Round 3 results

Divya Deshmukh

Divya Deshmukh had to fight hard for hours - but her resilience was rewarded with a half point | Photo: FIDE / Michal Walusza

In the game between Zhu Jiner and Bibisara Assaubayeva, the Chinese grandmaster once again obtained a strong position out of the opening, marking a third consecutive game in which she held the initiative. Assaubayeva adopted a sharp approach inspired by earlier practice, advancing her kingside pawns in a Sicilian structure with the idea of playing ...Rg8 and pushing the g-pawn.

Although Zhu initially handled the position well, she later misplaced her pieces and came under sustained tactical pressure. As the complications grew, her position deteriorated, and she was eventually left without adequate defensive resources.

Assaubayeva converted the advantage without difficulty, securing her first win of the event, while Zhu's score after three rounds stood at 1/3 despite getting three promising positions.

Bibisara Assaubayeva

Bibisara Assaubayeva | Photo: FIDE / Yoav Nis

Kateryna Lagno's victory over Tan Zhongyi followed a similarly complex course. Tan introduced an opening idea in the Italian Game and, after an inaccuracy by Lagno, built up a position that was close to winning.

However, a subsequent blunder allowed Lagno to generate counterplay, highlighted by the tactical sequence beginning with 22...Ne3+

Although Lagno later erred herself, dropping a piece as the players approached the time control, Tan failed to consolidate her advantage. A hurried 41st move proved costly, leaving Tan's position vulnerable. Then she blundered the game away in the very next move.

Lagno then seized the initiative with a precise attacking sequence, featuring a striking knight sacrifice that was underpinned by a remarkable queen sacrifice. The attack proved decisive, and Lagno secured the full point.

This DVD focuses on several types of material imbalances, such as Rook vs 2 Pieces, Queen vs 2 Rooks, and Queen vs Pieces.

Game analysis by Svitlana Demchenko

Tan Zhongyi

It was surely a painful loss for Tan Zhongyi | Photo: FIDE / Yoav Nis

Kateryna Lagno

Kateryna Lagno is sharing the lead - despite having been completely at some point in all three of her games so far! | Photo: FIDE / Michal Walusza

Standings after round 3

All games

Glorious sacrifices, unexpected tactics and checkmating attacks. The King's Gambit is one of the oldest and most romantic openings in the game of chess. This DVD contains all you need to know to tackle your opponent.

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Topics: Bibisara Assaubayeva, Candidates 2026, Kateryna Lagno
Carlos Colodro is a Hispanic Philologist from Bolivia. He works as a freelance translator and writer since 2012. A lot of his work is done in chess-related texts, as the game is one of his biggest interests, along with literature and music.
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