India’s R Vaishali is looking increasingly likely to emerge as the winner of the FIDE Women’s Candidates 2026 as each Round passes.

Vaishali is also on course towards breaking an all-time record after securing seven points at the end of Round 11, stepping foot into a territory often unexplored for Indians.

Here’s the best performance by an Indian in Women’s Candidates:

Currently, the best individual performance by an Indian woman in the tournament is Koneru Humpy’s second-place finish in the 2024 edition.

Koneru had scored 7.5 points at the end of 14 rounds finishing second in the standings.

Vaishali has to score one more point in the next three rounds to break Koneru’s record, while scoring three more points will take her to 10 points which is the best ever individual performance in the history of the tournament.

A tournament win will also cement Vaishali’s spot in the World Championship Final.

Published on Apr 13, 2026