Explained: What Are Rapid Tiebreaks & How Will They Be Played At Women's World Cup
Koneru Humpy and Divya Deshmukh drew their second game at the FIDE Women's World Chess Cup, pushing the title clash to rapid tiebreaks on Monday.
Star Indian chess players Koneru Humpy and Divya Deshmukh drew their second classical game as well on Sunday, July 27, at the FIDE Women's World Chess Cup in Batumi, Georgia, to push the title clash into a tiebreak, which will be played in the rapid format.
The tie-breaker, which will be a series of shorter-duration matches, will be played on Monday to determine the winner.
Divya, who didn't make the utmost use of her promising opening in the first match on Saturday, July 26, was far more composed against a Queen pawn opening by transposition employed by Humpy in game 2.
The latter, the reigning world rapid champion, enters the playoff with stronger credentials, but Divya has showcased brilliant composure in previous tiebreaks, having already beaten GM Zhu Jiner and compatriot D Harika.
Humpy got the optical advantage with her pair of bishops out of the opening, but Divya knew that if she placed her knights well, white wouldn't be able to create many issues.
What are rapid tiebreaks?
The first stage involves playing a set number of rapid matches with a reduced time control, for example, 15 minutes per player with a 10-second increment.
If the rapid tiebreak is drawn, a shorter rapid game might be played with even less time per player, for example, 10 minutes with a five-second increment.
What are the rules for the FIDE Women's Chess World Cup?
In case of a tiebreaker at the tournament, two rapid games of 10 minutes will be played with a 10-second increment after every move.
If the final is still tied, two five-minute games will be played with three-second increments after every move.
If the final is still tied, two Blitz games of three minutes each will be played, with two-second increments after every move.
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First Published:
July 28, 2025, 08:49 IST
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