Vaishali Shines as Round 2 of Women’s Grand Prix Heats Up
Round two of the 2024/2025 FIDE Women’s Grand Prix heats up in Grosslobming was packed with drama, comebacks, and surprising blunders.
Vaishali’s Confident Win
Indian chess star Vaishali Rameshbabu played a solid game with the black pieces to defeat Lela Javakhishvili. Using the Reverse Grunfeld, she surprised her opponent early and slowly built up pressure. Lela fought hard, but cracked on move 39 and had to resign. It was the cleanest win of the round.
Tan Zhongyi’s Second Comeback
Tan Zhongyi showed resilience again, coming back from a tough position for the second game in a row. Facing Olga Badelka, Tan blundered early, but Olga didn’t capitalize. Tan slowly turned the game around and took advantage of a big mistake by Olga on move 38. The former World Champion grabbed the win with calm endgame play.
Anna Muzychuk Beats Zhu Jiner
Anna Muzychuk defeated Zhu Jiner in the longest game of the day—lasting five hours and 84 moves. Zhu surprised Anna in the opening but made key errors in the endgame. Anna kept pressing and finally broke through to claim victory. She now stands in third place with 1.5 points.
Dzagnidze vs Kosteniuk: Missed Chances
Nana Dzagnidze had chances to win but missed her moment—again. After gaining a good position against Alexandra Kosteniuk, she blundered, then got another chance, but let it slip again. The game ended in a draw. Neither player was happy with their performance.
Mariya Muzychuk Holds Salimova
Mariya Muzychuk had the edge against Nurgyul Salimova with the black pieces. She was even a pawn up but couldn’t break through. Salimova defended well in time trouble, and the game ended in a balanced draw.
Game Highlights:
Tan Zhongyi – Olga Badelka (1-0)
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Tan blundered early with 15.Qd2??, but Olga missed the win.
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Olga later blundered with 38…a3??, allowing mate threats.
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Tan converted her advantage smoothly.
Anna Muzychuk – Zhu Jiner (1-0)
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Zhu surprised Anna with 5…Nxe4 in the Ruy Lopez.
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Anna got a better endgame and pressed hard.
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A late blunder by Zhu on move 84 handed Anna the win.
Vaishali – Javakhishvili (1-0)
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Vaishali played the Reverse Grunfeld confidently.
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She introduced a powerful novelty on move 14…Bf5.
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A nice tactic with 31…Nc1! sealed the deal.
Dzagnidze – Kosteniuk (½–½)
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Dzagnidze had winning chances but misplayed key moments.
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Kosteniuk missed chances too.
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After ups and downs, the game ended in a draw.
Salimova – Mariya Muzychuk (½–½)
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Mariya had the advantage early.
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Salimova defended well despite time pressure.
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A balanced draw was agreed after 35 moves.
Round 3 Pairings (May 8, 3PM CET):
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Vaishali Rameshbabu vs Nana Dzagnidze
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Mariya Muzychuk vs Lela Javakhishvili
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Zhu Jiner vs Nurgyul Salimova
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Olga Badelka vs Anna Muzychuk
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Alexandra Kosteniuk vs Tan Zhongyi
About the Tournament:
The Grosslobming event is the final leg of the 2024/2025 FIDE Women’s Grand Prix, part of the official FIDE Women’s World Championship cycle.
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Format: 10-player round-robin (9 rounds)
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Time Control: 90 minutes + 30 min after move 40 + 30s increment
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Prize Fund: €120,000
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Series: 6 tournaments across Georgia, Kazakhstan, Monaco, Cyprus, India, and Austria
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Top 2 players qualify for the 2026 Candidates Tournament
Photos: Przemyslaw Nikiel, FIDE_chess
Source: FIDE CHESS NEWS
