After analyzing the board, I see that while we don't have an immediate win, we need to prevent the opponent from potentially creating a strong diagonal or horizontal threat. For instance, placing in column 4 will prevent gpt-4.5-preview (playing as X) from developing a diagonal connection involving (row2, col2) and (row3, col3), and block future winning opportunities by X. Thus, I'll drop my piece in column 4 for a defensive block and setting up future opportunities.