After eight rounds, the 34th Women’s National A chess championship boasts of a sole leader in Tania Sachdev.

Today, the defending champion inched ahead after the top two boards—involving Swati Ghate-Donavalli Harika and Mary Ann Gomes-Kiran Manisha Mohanty—ended in draws.

The Delhi-based WGM, fresh from her Asian Championship win, put all her experience together to quell P Priya of Tamil Nadu.

Tania now leads a five-player second-place pack that inclues Swati, Kiran, Harika, Mary Ann and new incumbant Soumya Swaminathan by half a point.

At the Symbiosis Center for Health Care, Range Hills, Khadki, Priya, playing with white, chose the exchange variation of the Spanish Opening against Tania. The Tamil Nadu youngster made a questionable 8th move after which her pawn structure was severely weakened. Tania in the meantime built up pressure on white’s weak f5 pawn and soon gobbled it up.

After a couple of exchanges the game steered into a rook pawn ending where Tania used her advantageous rook position to win another pawn and forced Priya to resign.

On the top board, WGM Swati (LIC), playing white, chose the Be2 variation in the Sicilian Classical Opening, but Harika transposed the game into Sicilian Dragon Classical variation. Swati did not get much out of the opening and soon Harika maneuvered her Queen to a strong position. She then started to push her pawns on the Queenside to create a breakthrough.

Swati, sensing danger, began a counter attack on Harika’s King and in the process sacrificed an exchange. Harika, not at her best after that, allowed Swati to settle down and force a draw.

... contd.