Liza in lead

WIM Shamima Akter Liza enjoyed solo lead in the women's group of the Asian Zonal Chess Champiuonship with maximum five points after the fifth round played in Colombo, Sri Lanka yesterday. Liza beat WIM Ranasinghe of Sri Lanka while national champions Sharmin Sultana Shirin lost against her Sri Lankan counterpart Methmini Nelinika in this round.
Meanwhile, Bangladeshi men conceded the lead in their group as Pakistani IM Mahmood Lodhi took command with 4.5 points. National champion GM Niaz Murshed, GM Ziaur Rahman and GM Reefat Bin Sattar were in joint second position with 4 points each. In the fifth round, Zia beat Rajib and Niaz drew with Reefat.