‘Divya Is Like MS Dhoni, Can Perform Incredibly Well Under Pressure': Ex-Coach Srinath
Divya Deshmukh on Monday became India's 88th Grandmaster as she defeated the seasoned Koneru Humpy in the FIDE Women's World Cup with a tie-break win. The victory came after the two classical games played on Saturday and Sunday ended in draws.
Divya's former coach, Srinath Narayanan, described her as abundantly talented but more significantly, incredibly cool in crunch situations. Speaking with PTI, Srinath also said he feels the 19-year-old chess wizard's composure is comparable only to cricket great M S Dhoni.
'She's quite an aggressive player. But with time, Divya has become more all-round, more versatile. I think she's equally good across all the different formats… Classical, Rapid and Blitz," Srinath was quoted as saying by the PTI.
'And her strength is, I think, turning up in those big moments, crunch situations. Like how Mahendra Singh Dhoni used to win the matches in the last over.
'I saw something similar in Divya in those last-round situations or situations where everything was hanging in the high-pressure moments. She used to perform incredibly well under pressure in important matches," he added.
'So, it (association) started around 2018. We met at the World Under-16 Olympiad. The team was going to Turkey. I was the coach of the team, and I met her for the first time at the airport.
'She was incredibly talented. And she also had a certain kind of ability to win these big games and tournaments. So, in the very first tournament that I coached her, she won a very important game in the last round against Iran," said Srinath about the chess prodigy from Nagpur, whose parents are doctors.
'And because of that victory, we were able to win the silver medal in Turkey. I worked with her until 2020. And after that, during the (COVID-19) lockdown, the interactions became less."
With her achievements, Srinath feels she was already 'overqualified in terms of her playing level when she came into the women's World Cup."
'She is very strong. And in terms of her potential, she was very much there (at the GM level even before the tournament started)," he added.
A three-time gold medallist at the Olympiad, Divya has also won multiple gold medals at the Asian Championship, the World Junior Championship as well as the World Youth Championship. However, coming into the women's World Cup and beating some of the biggest names in the business needed more than just luck, and here's where her talent came to the fore.
(With PTI Inputs)
view comments
Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
News18
10 minutes ago
- News18
Zak Crawley & Ben Duckett Break Alastair Cook & Andrew Strauss' Record Of...
Last Updated: In 18 Test innings, Crawley and Duckett have added 984 runs as openers for England against India. Zak Crawley and Ben Duckett entered their names in the history books on Friday (August 1) by breaking the record for most runs as an opening pair for England in Tests against India. The duo have added 984 runs as openers for England in 18 Test innings against India. The previous record of most runs by an England opening pair against India was 932 runs in 20 innings by Alastair Cook and Andrew Strauss. Crawley and Duckett needed 41 runs to go past Cook and Strauss's tally on Friday, and they achieved the objective during the morning session of the second day's play at the Oval. The overall record of scoring the most runs as an opening pair in Tests against India is in the name of Gordon Greenidge and Desmond Haynes of the West Indies. Haynes and Greenidge played 30 innings as an opener and added 1325 runs. Crawley and Duckett have added 50 runs for the first wicket against India eight times in Test cricket, which is an English record. Greenidge and Haynes are the only other opening pair to have added at least 50 runs for the first wicket against India eight times in Test cricket. Most 50+ partnerships for an opening pair vs India in Tests Duckett out for 43 Duckett and Crawley added 92 runs in 12.4 overs for the first wicket on Friday. During his stay at the crease, Duckett faced 38 balls and, with the help of 5 fours and 2 sixes, scored 43 runs. He was sent back to the pavilion by Akash Deep on the fourth ball of the 13th over of England's first innings. Duckett was caught behind by Dhruv Jurel. Crawley, on the other hand, was batting on 52 runs from 43 balls at the end of the first session. view comments First Published: Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
News18
24 minutes ago
- News18
'Half-Hearted Shot': Ricky Ponting Slams Washington Sundar After Poor Dismissal
Last Updated: Ricky Ponting has criticised Washington Sundar's dismissal during a crucial phase of India's innings, falling to England's short-ball tactic. Former Australia captain Ricky Ponting didn't mince his words while slamming Washington Sundar on Friday, after the latter, coming off his maiden Test hundred in the fourth Test of the series, went for a big shot but ended up getting caught during a crucial phase of India's first innings. Karun Nair was the first to fall, beaten by a fuller in-dipper from Josh Tongue. It smacked him right in front of the stumps and umpire Kumar Dharmasena had no doubts before raising his finger. Nair opted for a review, though the reasoning behind it seemed known just to him. In the very next over, Sundar succumbed to England's short-ball tactic. Gus Atkinson dugged in one short. The former went for a pull but was caught by Jamie Overton at deep square leg. Sundar was so stunned by the dismissal that he refused to leave the track. He stood frozen in disbelief for a while before making his way back to the pavilion for 26. This was not the first time Sundar had fallen to a short-pitched ball in the series. In his brief career so far, Sundar has shown signs of being a compulsive hook-shot player. 'A bit of a nothing shot, half-hearted. You've got to get on top of that and hit it over the top. There was a bit more purpose, but it wasn't enough," Ponting said while commentating. Ben Duckett (43 off 38) and Zak Crawley (52 batting off 43) hit fours for fun on a green pitch where Atkinson took a deserving wicket haul by removing three Indian batters after play started. view comments First Published: Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
News18
25 minutes ago
- News18
BFI elections scheduled for August 21
New Delhi, Aug 1 (PTI) The long-overdue Boxing Federation of India elections (BFI) will be held on August 21 in Delhi, the Interim Committee running the sport in the country has announced. According to a circular issued on July 31 and signed by Interim Committee chief Ajay Singh, 'the Annual General Meeting (AGM) of Boxing Federation of India will be held on 21.08.2025 at Delhi-NCR at 11:00 am." The agenda for the AGM are 'confirmation of minutes of the previous meeting; election of various posts for the term 2025-2029 and any other item with the permission of the chair." The tenure of the previous BFI office-bearers ended on February 2. Elections were initially scheduled for March 28, but the process was stalled due to legal wrangling, including multiple appeals and counter-appeals. The BFI has been plagued by internal strife and factionalism in the run-up to the elections. The Returning Officer, former Delhi High Court judge RK Gauba, also resigned from his post, alleging a smear campaign against him. In April, World Boxing, the sport's international governing body, constituted the Interim Committee to manage the day-to-day affairs of Indian boxing. Last month, it set a deadline of August 31 to conduct the elections. The entire electoral process will now restart, including the appointment of a new Returning Officer and the drafting of a fresh Electoral College. The member associations have been asked 'to send names of their two representatives as per the provisions of BFI's Constitution as approved by World Boxing to BFI's office email before 5 pm on 04.08.2025." Singh, who has completed two four-year terms as President, is set to contest for the third and last term as per the 2011 National Sports Development Code of India. Former Sports Minister Anurag Thakur's had been nominated by Himachal Pradesh Boxing as its representative in March but his name didn't figure in the Electoral College finalised by Singh and subsequently approved by the RO. Singh had said Thakur was 'ineligible" to represent Himachal Pradesh, citing an official directive stating that only 'bonafide and duly elected members during the election AGM (duly notified to BFI) of the State Units affiliated with the BFI shall be authorised to represent their respective States/Union Territories." Thakur's exclusion led his faction to initiate legal proceedings. Interestingly, the revised BFI Constitution, which was approved by World Boxing on May 18, clearly defines a representative as 'a person nominated by each Member to represent it at the General Council. Such person shall be an elected member of State/UT Association in Election AGM in presence of BFI Observer and shall not be a Government servant or holding a public office." It needs to be seen if HP Boxing nominate Thakur's name again. PTI APA APA AT AT view comments First Published: August 01, 2025, 18:00 IST Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
