Chess Candidates: How risk-averse Indians sabotaged themselves in the fourth round

New Delhi: The fourth wheel has always been considered a psychological hurdle. Wednesday was the final push before the first scheduled rest day at the Cape St. George Hotel and Resort in Cyprus as the 2026 Candidates Tournament opens up a new level of competition. However, the Indian team seems to have mentally checked out their off day.It was indeed a day of missed opportunities and disappointing results for India. While the brother duo of R Praggnanandhaa and R Vaishali managed to save the draw, the spotlight turned to Divya Deshmukh, whose experimental game collapsed under the weight of basic errors.

For a country that looked solid in the first round, the fourth round felt like a whimper, a desperate rush toward the sanctuary of Thursday’s break.Praggnanandhaa’s dry fuckingR Praggnanandhaa, India’s only hope in the open section, had an uncharacteristic performance against Germany’s Matthias Blübaum. Playing black, the Chennai prodigy seemed content to steer the match towards neutral territory, as his German opponent wanted, rather than test his resolve.Senior general manager Pravin Thipsay is critical of this approach. “Bluebaum played very solidly, he chose a simple opening with white, and he just simplified it to a bland ending,” Tipsay told TOI while analyzing the match. “Pragnanandhaa did try to open the game through center, but he wasted some piece moves in 4…c6 and 5…c6, so when he played 6…c5, there was barely any chance of winning.”The game ended with 37 triple repetitions, a dull game that lacked the Prager-style aggression that the chess world has come to expect even when defending with black stones.Zindarov sets the toneWhile India struggled for pace, Uzbekistan’s Javokil Zindarov continued to set the pace, defeating world-class Fabiano Caruana. The result sent shockwaves through the chess world and firmly established the Uzbeks as the losers.

“It’s an interesting matchup between two players who lead this event with 2.5/3,” Thipsay noted. “Zindarov took the lead with a score of 3.5/4 beating Fabiano Caruana. It looks like a great result. At this stage, it can be said that his quality and performance or consistency are much better than others.” If things go the same way, then we can say that Zindalov will win this fight. “Vaishali escapesIn the women’s category, R Vaishali and Aleksandra Goryachkina performed a 27-step survival show. Vaishali chose the king-pawn opening that would become the Italian game (the modern bishop opening), but she found herself in trouble early on. “Vashali survived a bad situation. She had a bad start,” Tipsey said bluntly. “At one stage, there was a center exchange and it would have been a big positional advantage for her opponent if she had played exd4 (instead of 18…Nxd4). But after her opponent played Knight on d4, Vaishali recovered immediately and the game ended in a draw, with some exciting moments but nothing really serious.“FIDE Round 4 Candidate Results – April 1, 2026open part

Women’s group

Divya Deshmukh’s status collapsesThe most tragic result for India came on the board of Divya Deshmukh. Facing China’s Zhu Jiner white chess, Divia’s Slavic defense collapsed not because of the opponent’s excellence, but because of self-injury.“The most disappointing match of the day was Divya Deshmukh’s match,” Thipsay said. Divya Deshmukh played in the England opener. Early in the middle game, she has established a two-pawn structure on d4 and d5, with 8.cxd5…exd4 and 9.exd4…Bb6.“The position she plays may not be easy to understand, but she puts the double pawns in the middle, which creates a cramping effect. Apparently, she had no idea what was going on, because once she gained a bit of an advantage…she tried to push the pieces to the king’s side for no reason, instead of focusing on development. “

Her first big mistake was a premature kingside push, 12.h4, which weakened her position. Zhu Jiner took advantage of this and struck decisively, capturing the d5 piece with 17…Nxd5.“Divya also fortified the same side she weakened, and in the process lost a piece on move 17,” Tipsay explained. “The lost time and the lost pieces are irreversible. After that, the game was also very inaccurate. She lost the pieces again… In the final position, she was threatened by the loss of the queen, threatened by the loss of the mate, threatened by the loss of the chess fork. It was a very one-sided game between the two.”When Divya resigned after 36 moves, she was in a desperate situation. This is a clear case of a player losing track of the game while perhaps already thinking about their day off.The Indian contingent needs more than just rest. They need a complete recalibration.The safety mentality on display in the fourth round didn’t do much, but it made the game a success.Praggnanandhaa, Vaishali and Divya need to return on Friday. What they need is that killer instinct that seems to be lost in the Mediterranean heat.Matching Round 5 – April 3, 2026