Grandmaster Javokhir Sindarov beat co-leader Fabiano Caruana to take the outright lead after four rounds of the 2026 FIDE Candidates Tournament. Anish Giri also won against Andrey Esipenko, while two other games ended in draws. In the women's event, Anna Muzychuk defeated Kateryna Lagno to join Bibisara Assaubayeva at the top.
Javokhir Sindarov, a 20-year-old debutant from Uzbekistan, secured his third win of the tournament by defeating Fabiano Caruana in their key matchup. This victory gave Sindarov a score of 3.5/4, placing him a full point ahead of the field heading into Thursday's rest day. Caruana admitted, “I kind of got caught in the opening,” crediting Sindarov's preparation in the Queen's Gambit Accepted. Sindarov said, “Of course I never imagined I would go into the rest day with plus three but today I played a really good game and the prep was also fantastic, thanks to my seconds.” The win elevated Sindarov to world number six in live ratings, marking the best start in Candidates history for this format. The 2025 World Cup winner repeated a line against the experienced American, who struggled with time pressure and an exposed king after sacrificing a pawn. Anish Giri returned to 50 percent by beating Andrey Esipenko in a sharp Sicilian Najdorf. Giri's unusual king placement on d7 caught Esipenko off guard, leading to a critical error on move 18. “18...Ba4 is an amazing move,” Giri noted. “He has nothing.” Wei Yi and Hikaru Nakamura drew the longest game after a risky Dragadorf variation, while Matthias Bluebaum and Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu split the point in a quiet IQP position. In the women's section, late entrant Anna Muzychuk toppled Kateryna Lagno with a speculative piece sacrifice on move 20, tying Bibisara Assaubayeva, who drew with Tan Zhongyi. Zhu Jiner outplayed Divya Deshmukh in a tricky opening, and Vaishali Rameshbabu held Aleksandra Goryachkina to a draw despite early trouble. Round five resumes Friday at 8:45 a.m. ET.