Despite her achievements, Vaishali also faced setbacks, losing valuable rating points. However, she sees these experiences as valuable lessons.

“I would say it was a mixed year. I achieved some good results, but I also lost some rating points. It was a very interesting experience,” she said. “I had the chance to compete in strong round-robin tournaments and participate in prestigious events like the Candidates, back-to-back challenges. Overall, last year was a great learning experience for me.”

Vaishali recently finished ninth in the Challenger section of the Tata Steel Chess Tournament. She believes she could have secured a better position had she capitalised on her opportunities, a goal she is determined to achieve in future tournaments.

“Tata Steel is a strong tournament, and I think my performance was decent,” she said. “Surely, I could have scored a few more points. I had some good positions that I failed to convert, which I’ll work on and try to improve. Going forward, I want to focus on showing more consistent performance.”

During the tournament, a viral clip showed Uzbek Grandmaster Nodirbek Yakubboev refusing to shake hands with Vaishali due to religious reasons. The incident gained attention, with chess legend Susan Polgar among those commenting on it.

“I didn’t know it was a big thing back in India. I was focused on the games and didn’t know what was going on in social media,” Vaishali said. “Later, I got to know, and okay, we all know what happened. It didn’t affect me in any way.”