Sharing the lead at 3.5 points with Tania were International Master Nisha Mohota (PSPB) and Woman Grandmaster Mary Ann Gomes (AAI), half a point ahead of WGM Padmini Rout (Orissa) and S Harini (TN).
The crucial top board game between Bhakti and Tania featured Nimzo Indian defence. It was a pitched battle with both white and black going for the jugular. The middle game saw white slowly gaining the upper hand, winning a pawn in the queenside.
With the clock ticking away, Tania exerted pressure and her foray into white’s kingside with her queen and rook decided the issue in her favour. Bhakti resigned on the 38th move as she failed to thwart the forced loss of her queen for Tania’s rook.
Meanwhile, Tamil Nadu’s Harini put it across International Master Eesha Karavade of Maharashtra. Venturing into four-knight defence offered little solace to Eesha as Harini appeared to be on target early in the game.
As early as in the 12th move, white got the definite edge when Eesha overlooked the shattering of her kingside pawn structure. Further queen sortie by Harini increased the pressure on black’s defence. Deft handling of queen and double rook battery netted Harini the full point by the 29th move.
In other interesting games, Mary Ann Gomes brought down giant-killer Pratyusha Bodda while Sowmya Swaminathan inched her way up defeating Shweta Gole.
Results (Round 4): Bhakti Kulkarni (Goa) 2.5 lost to Tania Sachdev (Del) 3.5, Mary Ann Gomes (AAI) 3.5 bt Pratyusha Bodda (AP) 2.5, Meenakshi Subbaraman (IA) 2.5 lost to Nisha Mohota (PSPB) 3.5, Padmini Rout (Ori) 3 bt Pon N Krithika (AICF) 2, S Harini (TN) 3 bt Eesha Karavade (Mah) 2, J saranya (TN) 2.5 drew Swathi Ghate (LIC) 2, Sowmya Swaminathan (PSPB) 2.5 bt Shweta Gole (Mah) 1.5, A G Nimmy (Ker) 2 drew Cholleti Sahajasri (AP) 2, Sai Meera (IB) 2.5 bt Kiran Manisha Mohanty (Ori) 1.5, A Akshaya (TN) 1.5 lost to Aarthie Ramaswamy (IA) 2, P V Nandhidhaa (TN) 1 lost to Chandika Divyasree (AP) 2, M Mahalakshmi (TN) 1 lost to R Bharathi (TN) 2, Bagyashree Thipsay (AICF) 1 lost to P Bala Kannamma (TN) 2, Swati Mohota (WB) 1.5 bt P Michelle Catherina (TN) 0.5, Supriya Joshi (Mah) 0.5 drew Madhurima Shekhar (Del) 0.5.