Who is R Vaishali? Indian chess star who won Women's Candidates, qualified for World Championship

Indian Grandmaster Vaishali Rameshbabu, also known as R Vaishali, created history by becoming the first Indian woman to win the FIDE Women’s Candidates Tournament on Wednesday and qualify for the World Chess Championship.

Her remarkable achievement came in Cyprus, where she defeated Russia's Kateryna Lagno in the final round to seal the title and book her place as the challenger to reigning world champion Ju Wenjun.

Vaishali secured the win after Lagno resigned in 48 moves, unable to break through her strong position. Vaishali stayed in complete control throughout the match with her queen and two rooks dominating the board. She calmly finished the game, recording her name in the history books.

Vaishali went into Round 14 with 7.5 points and was in a joint lead with Uzbek GM Bibisara Assaubayeva. She needed a win in her final match to clinch the title, while a draw would have taken the contest to tie-breakers, especially if Bibisara also couldn't win her match.

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However, when Bibisara drew her Round 14 match to Women's World Cup winner Divya Deshmukh, it opened the door for Vaishali to seal qualification with a win, and she did exactly that.

Who is R Vaishali?

Vaishali is not a new name in the Indian chess circuit. Born in Chennai, she has been a consistent performer from a young age. She first gained attention after winning the World Youth Chess Championships in the Under-12 category in 2012 and the Under-14 category in 2015.

She won more titles, including the National Junior Girls Championship in 2015 and 2016 and earned her Woman International Master (WIM) title in 2016. Vaishali achieved the Woman Grandmaster (WGM) title in 2018 and later became an International Master (IM) in 2021.

Her journey to becoming a full Grandmaster was completed in 2023 when she crossed the 2500 Elo rating mark, becoming only the third woman from India to achieve the feat at the time.

Vaishali also played a key role in India’s gold medal win at the Online Chess Olympiad 2020 and later helped the women’s team win gold at the Chess Olympiad 2024. She won a bronze medal at the Women’s World Blitz Championship and delivered strong performances in events like the Tata Steel Challengers and Qatar Masters.

Vaishali is the elder sister of R Praggnanandhaa, one of India’s biggest chess stars. The duo made history earlier by becoming the first brother-sister pair to qualify for the Candidates tournaments and also the first siblings to become Grandmasters. She is also the first woman Grandmaster from Tamil Nadu.