Advice, practice games with Levon, Anish, Murzin came handy for Divya
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Nagpur: Divya Deshmukh's 74-move win over World Women's No. 1 Hou Yifan has once again brought the Nagpur girl into the limelight. During the seven-day World Rapid and Blitz Team Championship in London, the 19-year-old International Master (IM), representing Hexamind Chess Club, secured as many as three medals — two bronze and a silver.
Speaking exclusively to TOI, Divya shared her experience of playing alongside the world's best players, including Levon Aronian, Murzin Volodar, Anish Giri, and Vidit Gujrathi. Divya said, "The best moments were definitely the blitz knockouts and also the entire team spirit. Everyone was really friendly, and everyone got along really well, so it took away the pressure to perform. Levon, Anish, and Murzin helped me with advice, practice games etc, which was super nice of them.
And, of course, the banter."
Despite suffering a defeat against Yifan in the first leg of the round-robin semifinal, Divya remained positive and came back stronger to prevail over her experienced opponent. In the second leg of the semifinal, Divya utilised her opening advantage with the white pieces well and made her moves faster to take control of the clock for her first-ever victory over Yifan.
Explaining her strategy for getting the better of Yifan, Divya said, "I knew I had to go all out. I would have been automatically scared if the thought of playing against the World Champion had crept into my mind. So, it did not matter whom I was playing against; I focused on the game, and I only knew that I had to win the game."
On her future plans, Divya said that she is preparing for the forthcoming World Cup. She added, "I am focused, and my preparations are going well. I will give my best and will try to bring medals in future tournaments."
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