Neck and neck

Usually at this time during the penultimate round of the Malaysian Open there would be a clear leader. However for the first time this year, thing are not so clear as there are 11 joint leaders ! They are :

1. GM Venkatesh M.R.
2. GM Ma Qun
3. GM Fang Yuxiang
4. GM Tran Tuan Minh
5. GM Zhou Jianchao
6. IM Tan Justin
7. GM Vishnu Prasanna. V
8. GM Yu Ruiyuan
9. GM Nguyen Duc Hoa
10. IM Abdusattorov Nodirbek
11. GM Laylo Darwin

The final round 9 will be played this morning at 9am.

Crossreference table after 8 rounds:-
GM Zhou Jianchao GM Fang Yuxiang GM Fang Yuxiang GM Ma Qun IM Abdusattorov Nodirbek GM Tran Tuan Minh GM Vishnu Prasanna. V IM Justin Tan