Anish Giri joins She Plays to Win chess team

The all-female chess team ‘She Plays to Win’ (SPTW) Lionesses has integrated Grandmaster Anish Giri into their lineup to comply with the Four Nations Chess League (4NCL) regulations. The league rules require top-division teams to include at least one player of each sex to promote women's chess.

Following their promotion to the highest division, the team faced a choice between reforming the league's rules or adjusting their roster. Manager and England women's coach Lorin D’Costa opted to hire Giri, the world number 11, to play on the first board. The team also features Dutch player Eline Roebers on the second board, both supported by the sponsor Optiver.

In their opening weekend of the season, the Lionesses faced two matches. They narrowly lost to the Barnet Knights A with a score of 3.5–4.5, despite Giri winning his game in 24 moves. In the following round, they secured a 6–2 victory against The Sharks 2, with both Giri and Roebers winning their respective matches. The team currently sits in fifth place out of twelve after two rounds.