The dice rolled in favour of the host in the women’s section with India 1 moving within the gold medal-grabbing distance in the Chess Olympiad.
In the 10th and penultimate round on Monday, the trio of K. Humpy, Tania Sachdev and Bhakti Kulkarni scored thumping victories to set up a resounding 3.5-0.5 over Kazakhstan, one of the three fellow-overnight leaders.
What gave India 1 a one-point lead at 17 points was the 2-2 deadlock involving the other two overnight leaders Georgia and Poland. As things stand, a final-round victory over the US women will ensure the historic gold medal. In the Open section, India 1 also plays USA while India 2 takes on Germany.
