Former National under-14 champion Aarthie is leading the field in girls' under-18 with eight points here and needs to continue her good show to claim the title.

Evgenija (7.5) is following closely and one reverse result for the Indian may put the Russian into serious contention for the title.

Reigning girls under-12 world champion and top seed Koneru Humpy (8) though has suffered setback in her quest to retain the title, will look to pull off two good wins and hope that her group leader -- Georgian Nana Dzagnidze (8.5) -- loses some crucial points.

India, which entered in this championship with 11 players, however, failed to live up to the expectations as promising P Harikrishna, in boys under-16, is languishing in fifthplace with six points, 1.5 points behind leader Ni Hua.

Rahul Sangma (6.5), after leading his under-10 group till the halfway stage, has fallen behind with all the three top seeds Bonnet Edouard (France), Jonas Banusz (Hungary) and Boris Bruned (Spain) also struggling to find form.