Candidates chess | Nepomniachtchi takes sole lead after taming Gujrathi

Caruana-Gukesh games ends in a draw; Nakamura and Praggnanandhaa split the point; Vaishali is held while Humpy goes down to Salimova even as Zhongyi stays ahead in women’s event

Lording over: Nepomniachtchi’s 44-move win over Gujrathi put him on top, while Nakamura and Praggnanandhaa, background, played out a draw. Photo: FIDE

Ian Nepomniachtchi moved into the sole lead of the FIDE Candidates chess tournament in Toronto on Sunday. The Russian, who won the last two editions of the event, defeated Vidit Gujrathi in the fourth round.

Nepomnichtchi has three points. Top seed Fabiano Caruana and D. Gukesh are in second with 2.5 points apiece after their game ended in a draw. All the others are on 1.5 points.

In the women’s tournament, China’s Tan Zhongyi maintained her sole lead with three points after drawing with Russia’s Kateryna Lagno.

Another Russian, Aleksandra Goryachkina, who drew with R. Vaishali, is in the second spot with 2.5 points. Vaishali and Koneru Humpy, who was stunned by Bulgaria’s Nurgyul Salimova, are languishing in the bottom half with 1.5 points each.

Salimova, who is rated more than 100 points below Humpy, won in 62 moves. The Indian, who played black, was two pawns down in a rook-and-minor-piece ending.

“I was out of my preparation very early on and Humpy surprised me in the opening with her fifth move,” Salimova said.

“But the position later turned into something that I have checked. So, it was not like I was completely unfamiliar. When she started pushing the pawns, it looked scary, but it felt like I was always in control.”

All the other three games in the women’s section were drawn.

In the Open event too, there was only one decisive result — Nepomniachtchi’s 44-move win over Gujrathi, who slumped to his second straight defeat, after scoring a stunning victory against second seed Hikaru Nakamura.

The tournament will resume on Tuesday after a day’s rest.

The results, fourth round:

Open: Hikaru Nakamura (USA) 1.5 drew with R. Praggnanandhaa 2; Ian Nepomniachtchi (FIDE) 3 bt Vidit Gujrathi 1.5; Fabiano Caruana (USA) 2.5 drew with D. Gukesh 2.5; Nijat Abasov (Aze) 1.5 drew with Alireza Firouzja (Fra) 1.5.

Women: Aleksandra Goryachkina (FIDE) 2.5 drew with R. Vaishali 2; Nurgyul Salimova (Bul) 2 Koneru Humpy 1.5. Kateryna Lagno (FIDE) 2 drew with Tan Zhongyi (Chn) 3; Anna Muzychuk (Ukr) 1.5 drew with Lei Tingjie (Chn) 1.5.