Ju Wenjun vs. Tan Zhongyi, game 8 Opening: Returning to the basics
It’s game eight of the 2025 FIDE Women’s World Chess Championship, and defending champion Ju Wenjun has a commanding 5-2 lead over challenger Tan Zhongyi. As White, Zhongyi has switched to a new approach to try to claw back into the match, playing 1. e4 for the first time, and then 2. Nc3 rather than the usual 2. Nf3. Wenjun was thinking early, as she pondered the change. Her choice of 3. …Nc6 over 3. …Nxe4 indicated a desire to avoid complications.
Five moves in, it looked like a beginner game! The position was close to symmetrical, as every move followed the basic opening rules we all know, prompting commentator Jovanka Houska to describe the “scholastic variation” should Black have castled rather than traded on c3, allowing an annoying Bg5 pin, followed by Nd5 — a classic pattern in junior chess.
We await how Zhongyi adds some complexity to the game, as it has started very stably in a game she will be feeling great pressure to push for a win.
The first 9 moves of game 8 are given below. Follow the game live on Lichess, or on stream with commentary by IMs Jovanka Houska and Irene Sukandar.
