Hou Yifan beat her outdated rival Koneru Humpy on the World Chess League in Mumbai.
| Picture Credit score: GCL
Hou Yifan hadn’t precisely set the Arabian Sea — only a stone’s throw away from her resort — on fireplace throughout the first half of the World Chess League. She simply gained one in every of her six video games, drew two and misplaced three.
Since then, she has gained three video games on the trot, two of them on Sunday, in entrance of one other full home on the Royal Opera Home. Her splendid present, with black items in each video games, has brightened the possibilities of her group Alpine SG Pipers making it to the ultimate. The match in opposition to upGrad Mumba Masters pitted Hou in opposition to her outdated rival Koneru Humpy, whom she had overwhelmed for her second World title again in 2011. Then she got here throughout Bibisara Assaubayeva, who has been a strong performer for Fyers American Gambits. The previous World fast and blitz champion hadn’t misplaced a single recreation, however she was outwitted by the mastery of Hou’s end-game.
The 2 match victories have taken the SG Pipers to the second spot on the desk. They now have 15 match factors and 78 recreation factors, however are behind the Triveni Continental Kings. The 2-time defending champion, actually, made it to the ultimate but once more, with a match to spare, after its 14-5 victory in opposition to Ganges Grandmasters. It has 21 match factors and 92 recreation factors.
Three groups are going into the final day of league on 12 match factors – Mumba Masters (83 recreation factors), Ganges Grandmasters (71) and Alaskan Knights (62).
The outcomes: upGrad Mumba Masters misplaced to PBG Alaskan Knights 8-10 (Maxime Vachier-Lagrave bt D. Gukesh,;Wesley So drew with Arjun Erigaisi, Shakhriyar Mamedyarov misplaced to Leinier Dominguez; Koneru Humpy drew with Kateryna Lagno; D. Harika misplaced to Sarasadat Khademalsharieh; Bardiya Daneshvar bt Daniel Dardha)
Fyers American Gambits misplaced to Alpine SG Pipers 7-8 (Hikaru Nakamura drew with Fabiano Caruana; Vladislav Artmiev drew with Anish Giri; Richard Rapport drew with R. Praggnanandhaa; Bibisara Assaubayeva misplaced to Hou Yifan; Teodora Injac drew with Nino Batsiashvili; Volodar Murzin bt Leon Mendonca).
Ganges Grandmasters misplaced to Triveni Continental Kings 5-14 (Viswanathan Anand misplaced to Alireza Firouzja; Vincent Keymer drew with Wei Yi; Jovakhir Sindarov bt Vidit Gujrathi; Polina Shuvalova misplaced to Zhu Jiner; Stavroula Tsolakidou misplaced to Alexandra Kosteniuk; Raunak Sadhwani drew with MarcAndria Maurizzi).
upGrad Mumba Masters misplaced to Alpine SG Pipers 7-8 (Vachier-Lagrave drew with Caruana; So drew with Giri; Mamedyarov drew with Praggnanandhaa; Humpy misplaced to Hou; Harika drew with Batsiashvili; Daneshvar bt Mendonca).
(The author is in Mumbai on the invitation of Tech Mahindra).
Printed – December 22, 2025 12:03 am IST
