New Delhi [India], April 12 (ANI): R Vaishali took a significant step toward winning the FIDE Women’s Candidates after defeating Aleksandra Goryachkina with the black pieces in Round 11.Vaishali capitalised on a decisive blunder that left Goryachkina’s rook trapped, forcing the Russian to eventually concede, as per ESPN.R Vaishali, already leading the standings, moved to seven points from 11 games with another crucial win, strengthening her position at the top. Zhu Jiner and Anna Muzychuk are now joint second, a full point behind the Indian, with three rounds remaining.Meanwhile, Divya Deshmukh held Zhu Jiner to a draw with black in her Round 11 game, while Anna Muzychuk shared points with Kateryna Lagno.Meanwhile, in the open section, India’s R Praggnanandhaa drew his match against Matthias Bluebaum with the white pieces, which took his points tally to 4.5.Javokhir Sindarov, playing with black, drew his long battle against Fabiano Caruana, taking his tally to 8.5 points from 11 games and moving closer to a Candidates victory. Anish Giri, the nearest challenger, stands on 6.5 points after drawing with Andrey Esipenko, leaving him further behind with only a few rounds remaining.Meanwhile, Hikaru Nakamura, playing with white, also shared the point in his game against Wei Yi.FIDE Candidates 2026 Women’s Standings:R Vaishali – 7Zhu Jiner – 6Anna Muzychuk – 6Bibisara Assaubayeva – 5.5Kateryna Lagno – 5.5Aleksandra Goryachkina – 5Divya Deshmukh – 5Tan Zhongyi – 4FIDE Candidates 2026 Open Standings:Javokhir Sindarov – 8.5Anish Giri – 6.5Fabiano Caruana – 5.5Hikaru Nakamura – 5Wei Yi – 5Matthias Blubaum – 5R Praggnanandhaa – 4.5Andrey Esipenko – 4. (ANI)(This content is sourced from a syndicated feed and is published as received. The Tribune assumes no responsibility or liability for its accuracy, completeness, or content.)