Grandmaster R Vaishali emerged victorious in Asian Online Nations Cup

Woman Grandmaster R Vaishali was in great form in the ongoing Asian Online Nations Cup tournament. GM Praggnanandhaa's elder sister Vaishali was instrumental in helping India finish at the top of the tournament in the initial stage. Vaishali scored 6.5 points from 9 rounds on the top board to claim the individual gold medal in the competition.

Also, Indian team captain Mary Ann Gomes also claimed a gold medal, while Padmini Raut bagged the silver medal in the same tournament.

There have been frequent performances by Vaishali in the last few months. She has finished 8th in the FIDE women's speed chess that was held in July. Also, she was a part of the Indian team that clinched a gold medal in the online chess Olympiad in August.

"The experience of playing top players in the last few months has boosted my confidence. The individual gold in this tournament is the result of the hard yards put in by me in recent times. The next target is to help India win the team gold," Vaishali stated.

Vaishali's coach RB Ramesh feels that she has started fulfilling her potential. "She has been working on all aspects of her game. Vaishali will only get better if she continues to work hard," her coach said.

Despite being in good form this year on the online circuit, Vaishali is all set to get back to playing in the over-the-board event. "At the moment, we don’t know when we will play in an over-the-board tournament next. But online events too have its charm, and we are enjoying it," Vaishali said.