Grandmaster Tingjie beat Chinese compatriot and fellow Grandmaster Zhongyi by 3.5 to 1.5 at the Chongqing Sports Lottery Chess Club, with Zhongyi winning the opening game after her opponent made a late error, before being forced to resign a couple of moves later.

Game two had looked like it was heading towards a draw, however Zhongyi made a late mistake, allowing Tingjie to win the game by advancing her two connected passing pawns and level the contest at 1-1.

The third game ended as a draw, which was agreed on move 40, and was a high-quality affair, with both players scoring 98 per cent according to online precision ratings, meaning they were judged to have made no mistakes or inaccuracies in their moves during the game.

In game four Zhongyi missed a move, allowing Tingjie to attack her opponent’s king, and forcing her to resign.

Tingjie led 2.5 to 1.5 heading into today’s game, and knowing it was win or bust, Zhongyi employed a variation of moves known as the Colle-Zukertort system, which according to statisticians she had never used before in more than 600 tournament matches playing with the white pieces.

Tingjie was not caught out by her opponent’s unusual approach, and moved into a strong position to get the decisive victory when Zhongyi moved the pawns in front of her king when it was not required.

Tingjie surrounded her opponent’s king and was able to secure victory by 3.5 to 1.5.

As well as the right to challenge fellow Chinese grandmaster Wenjun for the Women’s World Championship in July, Tingjie also claimed a cash prize of €60,000 (£52,600/$65,000).