WATCH: Emotional Divya Deshmukh in tears, hugs mother after winning Women's World Cup
As soon as she composed herself, she found her mother and hugged her before the tears started flowing again. It was a heartwarming moment and showed what it means for the family. She composed herself, supported by her mother as she got ready for the post-match interviews.
The victory for the Nagpur player came after the two classical games played on Saturday and Sunday ended in draws.
19-year-old Divya Deshmukh is in tears after winning the 2025 FIDE Women's World Cup! pic.twitter.com/DuFYH0bqT5
— chess24 (@chess24com) July 28, 2025
Divya winning the Women's World Cup also makes her eligible to be India's fourth woman to become a grandmaster, which is significant because before the event started she had none of the three norms required to become a grandmaster.
In the time-controlled tie-breaker on Monday, Divya, playing with white, was again held to a draw.
But in the reverse game, where she had black pieces, she managed to overcome the two-time world rapid champion 2.5-1.5.
'I think it was fate, me getting the grandmaster title this way,' an emotional Divya said right after her win. 'Before the tournament, I didn't even have one norm. I was thinking that I could maybe earn a grandmaster norm here. And at the end, I became a grandmaster.' One of Divya's first reactions after winning the title was: 'I definitely need to learn endgames.'
Divya's hug to her mom says everything ❤️#FIDEWorldCup @DivyaDeshmukh05 pic.twitter.com/jeOa6CjNc1
— International Chess Federation (@FIDE_chess) July 28, 2025
The first two classical games between Humpy and Divya had ended in draws. The first game, which was played on Saturday, was where Divya had the best chances to win, while playing with white pieces. She came with a plan and got a sizeable advantage on the board. But then at the end, she scuffed her lines and allowed Humpy to equalise.
Divya had said that that draw had 'felt like a loss' to her. 'I had seen everything (beforehand). So I was disappointed by that,' she said.
Humpy too had agreed that Divya was 'clearly better' after 12 moves. 'After that move, I'm not sure what was going on, but it was very complicated,' Humpy admitted.
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Indian Express
14 minutes ago
- Indian Express
Divya Deshmukh's FIDE win at FIDE Women's World Cup and a turning point in Indian women's chess
Over the span of 25 days in Batumi, little cracks started to appear in China's dominance of women's chess. A nine-woman contingent made its way from China to the Georgian city to try and win the FIDE Women's World Cup, only to see two Indians — the 19-year-old champion Divya Deshmukh and the 38-year-old finalist Koneru Humpy — fighting it out for the title at the end. The contrast in India and China's fortunes was most visible during the final: While Divya fought against Humpy for the title, the Chinese duo of Tan and Lei were fighting for the third place. 'Indian chess is just unbelievable!' wrote chess legend Judit Polgar in a post on her X account. Having two Indian women fighting in the finale was a moment that could be an indicator of a seismic shift in the world of women's chess. After all, this comes on the back of the Indian women's team claiming the Chess Olympiad gold medal just last year. China has been a dominant force in women's chess for decades now. While they have not had a World Cup winner in three editions, their prowess in women's chess is strongly reflected in women's world championships, the pinnacle of women's chess. Six out of the 17 women's world champions in history have been from China. The first of these was Xie Jun, who became the first-ever women's chess champion from Asia when she claimed the title in 1991. After claiming the title thrice more, she passed the torch to Zhu Chen and Xu Yuhua. Then came the era of Hou Yifan, who won the title four times starting from 2010. The 15 years since that title from Yifan have seen three women from China claim the women's world champion's crown — Tan Zhongyi and Ju Wenjun being the other two. This reign of China on the women's world champion's throne since 2010 was only briefly interjected twice. 'Divya's win is a great thing for India because of the way the country's players dominated the World Cup. Women's chess especially was always dominated by Russia and China, two very strong countries,' points out grandmaster Abhijit Kunte, who was the captain of the Indian women's team at the Olympiad last year where the first blow to China's dominance was struck by Indian women. At the Olympiad, a team event, China had sent a second-string team without stars like women's world champion Ju Wenjun, Tan Zhongyi and Lei Tingjie. At the Women's World Cup, though, it had one of the strongest contingents, missing only two top stars: World No 1 Hou Yifan, who is semi-retired at this point, and women's world champion Ju. China's nine-player contingent was matched in numbers by India's nine players among the 107 contenders from 46 countries. 'The way India dominated the World Cup, it showed that our players are ready to take on everybody. China cannot take India lightly now, because we have gold and silver medals in the World Cup, we won a silver medal at the Asian Games and we were gold medalists in the Chess Olympiad. Having two India versus China semi-finals shows how stiff the competition between the two countries is,' says Kunte. What makes the one-two finish by Indian players even more remarkable is that the FIDE Women's World Cup is the trickiest format in the sport to navigate. It's a minefield where each round involves one-on-one battles in the two-game mini matches in the classical format. If the two classical games do not yield a winner, the battle enters a third day where there are skirmishes in the rapid format and then blitz if necessary until there's a winner. On paper, it should have been an exhausting format for someone like Humpy. And a daunting one for someone as inexperienced as Divya. But eventually, the grizzled veteran and the tenacious teenager were left standing to fight for the title. Away from the two players too, there are plenty of positives: Be it Woman International Master Priyanka K outlasting Women's Grandmaster Zsoka Gaal in tense tiebreaks, or I M Vantika Agrawal taking out former women's world champion Anna Ushenina, or India having more players in the quarter-finals (four) than China (three). 'Our Olympiad team members, Vaishali Rameshbabu and Harika Dronavalli, also made it to the quarter-finals. So if you look at the bench strength of the Indian women's players in this World Cup, we can say that for the very first time in women's chess, we sort of outperformed the Chinese players. That in itself is a show of dominance. Along with the fact that we are better, we also have players that are currently improving. Divya, for example, is far away from reaching her peak,' says Kushager Krishnater, who has been Humpy's second since August 2022. 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Indian Express
14 minutes ago
- Indian Express
Full list of Indian Grandmasters: Divya Deshmukh becomes 88th GM of India, 4th Indian female GM, 13th from Maharashtra; Check updated list
Full list of Indian Grandmasters: Monday evening has been a special one for Indian teenage chess prodigy Divya Deshmukh, who clinched the FIDE Women's World Cup 2025 title after brushing aside compatriot Koneru Humpy in tiebreaks of the title-clash in Batumi. The 19-year-old thus qualified for the 2026 Candidates Tournament and became the 88th Grandmaster of India. Her triumph also made her only the fourth Indian female GM after Humpy, Harika Dronavalli and R. Vaishali. She is also the 44th female to get a Grandmaster title. Divya handed defeats to some of the biggest names in the chess fraternity for the biggest title of her career. The 2024 World Junior Champion beat the likes of Zhu Jiner, Harika, and former World Champion Tan Zhongyi to come through a very tough bracket before beating India No. 1 Humpy. Divya didn't have a single GM norm ahead of the World Cup, nor did she meet the required rating (a standard 2500) to be eligible for the coveted title but her World Cup win helped her circumvent all the usual FIDE requirements as she becomes the latest Grandmaster of India, and the 13th from Maharashtra. The five-time World Champion Viswanathan Anand is the first GM from India.
The Hindu
44 minutes ago
- The Hindu
FIDE Women's Chess World Cup review: Indian chess hits new high with Divya Deshmukh's title win
Indian chess has never had it this good, showcasing its growing prowess with consistency and signalling that the best may still lie ahead. After five-time World Champion Viswanathan Anand's glorious years, Indian chess is now witnessing success stories like never before. In the past year alone, the country swept gold at the Chess Olympiad, 18-year-old D. Gukesh triumphed at the Candidates Tournament to become World Champion, and now, 19-year-old Divya Deshmukh has stunned the world with her conquest of the Women's World Cup. The World Cup in Batumi, Georgia, featured a field of 107 players and intense knockout-format battles. The rules tested players' skills across multiple time formats. The elite field included nearly all top players except the reigning World Champion Ju Wenjun. As it turned out, the final battle for glory was fought between compatriots K. Humpy and Divya. At 38, Humpy had experience that exceeded Divya's age, but in the tournament's decisive phase, it was Divya's energy that proved more effective. It was a fairytale finish for the girl from Nagpur, who prevailed 2.5-1.5 after the two classical-format games ended in draws. In the tiebreaks, the second rapid game proved decisive when Humpy faltered more than once in a tense endgame. She could not capitalise on Divya's late oversight and eventually blundered, handing her younger opponent a memorable title win. For Divya, the World Cup was worth much more than the top prize of $50,000 (approximately ₹43.35 lakh). The victory brought with it the Grandmaster title—remarkable considering she arrived at the event without a single GM norm to her name. Divya, who became only the fourth Indian woman to earn the Grandmaster title, took the country's tally to 88. By topping the field, she led a trio of qualifiers for the Candidates Tournament, which decides who will challenge the reigning World Champion from China. After India secured two of the three Candidates spots, Tan Zhongyi beat Chinese teammate and favourite Lei Tingjie 1.5-0.5 by winning the second classical game. For the first time, India outplayed so many strong Chinese challengers in a marquee individual event. Divya ousted the second and third seeds — Zhu Jiner and Tan Zhongyi — while Humpy eliminated top seed Lei Tingjie after clawing back from a 0-1 deficit to win 5-3 in a high-stakes semifinal. Of the nine Indians who competed, four reached the quarterfinals. By some twist of fate, each player who beat an Indian was eventually beaten by another Indian. Generational shift: A final that felt like a baton pass — from Humpy's legacy to Divya's rise. | Photo Credit: Anna Shtourman The celebrations began the moment Humpy joined Divya in the final, ensuring India would take the top two spots and secure a pair of Candidates berths. In recent years, the spotlight has largely been on India's rise in men's chess. Now, it's time to acknowledge how Indian women have steadily seized their place at the global high table. Last year, Humpy finished runner-up in the Candidates, while R. Vaishali placed a strong fourth. The women's team matched the men's gold-winning performance at the Chess Olympiad in Budapest. The year ended with Humpy reclaiming the World Rapid title and Vaishali claiming a surprise bronze in the World Blitz Championship. Divya's World Junior Girls title, though significant, flew under the radar. But her triumph in Batumi dwarfs all her previous successes. Seeded 15th, Divya beat five higher-rated opponents—among them former World Champion Tan Zhongyi and 2022 World Rapid winner Zhu Jiner. Add to that her victories over her idols-turned-teammates Humpy and Harika, and Divya's campaign acquires a whole new dimension. Though Divya's World Cup win will understandably overshadow other performances, it's important to recognise what Humpy accomplished during her run. As the highest non-Chinese seed, Humpy outperformed her fourth seeding by accounting for Lei Tingjie, the 2023 World Championship runner-up, in the semis. She had earlier defeated rising Chinese star Song Yuxin and 2008 World Champion Alexandra Kosteniuk, now representing Switzerland. Elsewhere, Harika impressed by defeating seventh seed Kateryna Lagno, the 2018 World Championship runner-up and a former World Rapid Champion. Another commendable performance came from 39th-seeded Vantika Agrawal, who knocked out 2012 World Champion Anna Ushenina on her way to the third round. All told, this World Cup will be remembered not just for Divya and Humpy's dominance but for the grit and resilience shown by the Indian contingent when it mattered most. In short, it was Indian women's chess at its finest, and the best possible global showcase of their rising stature. How the Indians fared Divya Deshmukh (Seed 15 | Rating: 2463 in June 2025) Champion R1: Bye R2: Beat 79-Kesaria Mgeladze (Georgia, 2226) — 1.5–0.5 R3: Beat 18-Teodora Injac (Serbia, 2457) — 1.5–0.5 Pre-QF: Beat 2-Zhu Jiner (China, 2547) — 2.5–1.5 QF: Beat 10-D. Harika (India, 2483) — 3–1 SF: Beat 3-Tan Zhongyi (China, 2546) — 1.5–0.5 Final: Beat 4-K. Humpy (India, 2543) — 2.5–1.5 Koneru Humpy (Seed 5 | Rating: 2543) Runner-up R1: Bye R2: Beat 61-Afruza Khamdamova (Uzbekistan, 2326) — 1.5–0.5 R3: Beat 29-Klaudia Kulon (Poland, 2407) — 1.5–0.5 Pre-QF: Beat 13-Alexandra Kosteniuk (Switzerland, —) — 2.5–1.5 QF: Beat 28-Song Yuxin (China, 2410) — 1.5–0.5 SF: Beat 1-Lei Tingjie (China, 2552) — 5–3 Final: Lost to 15-Divya Deshmukh — 1.5–2.5 D. Harika (Seed 10 | Rating: 2483) Quarterfinalist R1: Bye R2: Beat 55-P. V. Nandhidhaa (India, 2343) — 1.5–0.5 R3: Beat 23-Stavroula Tsolakidou (Greece, 2428) — 4–2 Pre-QF: Beat 7-Kateryna Lagno (Russia, 2515) — 3.5–2.5 QF: Lost to 15-Divya Deshmukh — 1–3 R. Vaishali (Seed 11 | Rating: 2481) Quarterfinalist R1: Bye R2: Beat 54-Maili-Jade Quellet (Canada, 2350) — 2–0 R3: Beat 22-Carissa Yip (USA, 2431) — 4–2 Pre-QF: Beat 59-Meruert Kamalidenova (Kazakhstan, 2330) — 4.5–3.5 QF: Lost to 3-Tan Zhongyi (China, 2546) — 0.5–1.5 Other Indian Participants Vantika Agarwal — Reached Third Round Padmini Rout — Reached Second Round P. V. Nandhidhaa — Reached Second Round K. Priyanka — Reached Second Round Kiran Manisha Mohanty — Lost in First Round
