Gukesh and Tan on brink of winning Chess Candidates Tournaments

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Gukesh Dommaraju moved into sole lead after defeating Alireza Firouzja in round 13 of the Candidates Chess Tournament. Half a point behind are Ian Nepomniachtchi and Hikaru Nakamura, now joined by Fabiano Caruana who defeated Praggnanandhaa. The top four players are still in contention to win and are paired against each other in the final round.

Vaishali 4th consecutive victory in the Women’s Candidates Tournament was a huge favor for the current leader Tan Zhongyi. Vaishali defeated Tan’s only competitor Lei Tingjie, who is now a full point behind the leader. Tan needs a draw against Anna Muzychuk to secure qualification for the World Championship Match.

The final round is on Sunday from 2:30 pm local time. If needed, tiebreaks will be on Monday at the same time.

Watch the recap by IM Kostya Kavutskiy:

Standings after Round 13:
Open:

1. Gukesh – 8.5
   2-4. Caruana, Nakamura, Nepomniachtchi – 8
2. Praggnanandhaa – 6
3. Vidit – 5.5
4. Firouzja – 4.5
5. Abasov – 3.5

Women’s:

1. Tan – 8.5
2. Lei – 7.5
   3-6. Goryachkina, Koneru, Lagno, Vaishali – 6.5
   7-8. A. Muzychuk, Salimova – 5

Round 14 pairings:
Open:
Nakamura – Gukesh
Firouzja – Vidit
Abasov – Praggnanandhaa
Caruana – Nepomniachtchi

Women’s:
Lagno – Vaishali
Lei – Koneru
A. Muzychuk – Tan
Goryachkina – Salimova