Latest news with #Humpy
The Hindu
13 minutes ago
- Sport
- The Hindu
All-India Affair: Koneru Humpy to meet Divya Deshmukh in FIDE Women''s World Cup final
Grandmaster Koneru Humpy held her nerves to score a come-from-behind victory over China'sTIngjie Lei in the tiebreaker to set up an all-Indian summit clash against Divya Deshmukh at the FIDE Women's World Cup here on Thursday (July 24, 2025). Humpy will clash with Divya Deshmukh in the final starting after a day's rest starting on Saturday. With Humpy winning, both she and Divya have now qualified for the Women's candidates' tournament next year. Having drawn the first two games in the normal time control Humpy had to settle up with another 1-1 draw in the tiebreaker that comprised two games with 15 minutes for both players with an increment. After two draws here, Humpy had to really work hard in the next set of tiebreak games that had 10 minutes for both players with another increment. Lei got in the lad early in the set of these two games and Humpy erred in the middle game to lose a pawn and get in to a difficult endgame. What followed was pretty logical as Lei got in command and even thought the position was closer to a draw Humpy did not find the best defensive resources to equalize. Humpy lost another pawn on the queen side and despite the presence of opposite coloured Bishops in the endgame, white's influence on both flanks tilted things decisively in her favour. It was a win on demand wherein Humpy dominated the next game. The Queen pawn opening was good enough wherein Humpy was in command right from the word go. Humpy won with her superior technique and also her absolute determination to turn the tide in her favour from any given position. In the third set of tie-break games Humpy drew white in the first game and crushed Lei in all departments of the game. Winning this game meant that just a draw was needed for her to get in to the final and in the return game Humpy was at her technical best as she won again out of an Italian opening. If there is one title that has eluded Humpy it's the World Cup and world championship. Apart that Humpy has won everything under the sun.
India Today
3 hours ago
- Sport
- India Today
Koneru Humpy sets up historic all-Indian Women's World Cup final vs Divya Deshmukh
Grandmaster Koneru Humpy advanced to the final of the FIDE Women's World Cup after defeating China's Lei Tingjie in a lengthy tiebreak in Georgia on Thursday, setting up an all-Indian final with Divya Deshmukh. With this result, both Humpy and Divya have secured places in the Women's Candidates Tournament scheduled for next will be generational battle in the FIDE Women's World Cup Final as 38-year-old Grandmaster Koneru faces teenage prodigy Divya, who won her maiden GM Norm earlier in the tournament, inching closer to becoming only the fourth-ever female Grandmaster from the World Champion Viswanathan Anand praised Humpy's performance, lauding the veteran's consistency in big-ticket tournaments in the recent past. 'The tiebreak between Humpy Koneru and Lei Tingjie ended in a duel of nerves given the huge stakes involved. Humpy managed to compose herself and come back into the match after the first setback and then won the last two games to go through. Incredible resilience and, after her World Rapid win as well as her shared first place in the Pune Grand Prix, a remarkable World Cup to get another Candidates spot.'"Indian fans can rejoice," Anand said, highlighting the enormity of the occasion. For the first time, two Indians will compete in the final of the Women's World Cup. The final will get underway on Saturday following a rest HUMPY FIGHTS IT OUTHumpy and Lei had drawn their two classical games earlier in the week, sending the match into rapid tiebreaks. The first set of rapid games, played with a time control of 15 minutes plus 10 seconds increment, also ended in a 1-1 stalemate. That led to a second set of games, with 10 minutes per player and the same the first of those games, Lei capitalised on an error in the middlegame to gain a pawn and convert her advantage into a win in the endgame. Despite the presence of opposite-coloured bishops, Humpy was unable to hold for a draw and found herself needing a win to stay in the responded with a composed and efficient performance in the return game. Playing with the white pieces, Humpy adopted a Queen's Pawn opening and maintained steady control throughout. Her positional superiority and technical endgame play allowed her to level the score and force another set of blitz third set, played at five minutes plus a three-second increment, saw Humpy in command. She won the first game convincingly with the white pieces, putting Lei under pressure from the opening and steadily building an advantage. In the reverse game, needing only a draw to progress, Humpy opted for the Italian Opening and gradually tightened her grip on the position. She went on to win the game, sealing her place in the final with a 2-0 result in the blitz this win, Humpy moves into her first Women's World Cup final. While she has held the World Rapid title and been part of multiple major team and individual triumphs, the World Cup has been one of the few titles missing from her Deshmukh, 18, will be her opponent in the final after beating Russia's Polina Shuvalova in her own semi-final. (WITH PTI Inputs)- Ends
Hindustan Times
4 hours ago
- Sport
- Hindustan Times
Women's World Cup: Humpy blitzes Lei to set up final against Deshmukh
New Delhi: The final of the 2025 FIDE Women's World Cup is going to be an all-India affair after Koneru Humpy beat China's Lei Tingjie 5-3 in a tie-breaker that left all those watching breathless. She has set up a battle against 19-year-old compatriot Divya Deshmukh, who beat Tan Zhongyi in the classical format on Wednesday. Women's World Cup: Humpy blitzes Lei to set up final against Deshmukh After scrambling and surviving the first two Rapid games, Humpy, playing black, lost the third Rapid game of the day as Lei took early charge and didn't let go. With her tournament on the line, Humpy needed a win and she did just that. Humpy, playing with white, won the next Rapid game at a canter demolishing Lei in just 39 moves. Lifted by that performance, she won the next two Blitz games to seal her place in the final. As a result, Humpy has also earned her spot in the FIDE Women's Candidates Tournament which will be held in the first half of 2026. Commenting on the tie-breaker on X, five-time World Champion Viswanathan Anand said: 'The tiebreak between Humpy and Lie Tingjie ended in a duel of nerves given the huge stakes involved. Humpy managed to compose herself and come back into the match after the first setback and then won the last two games to go through. Incredible resilience and after her World Rapid win as well as her shared first place in the Pune Grand Prix, a remarkable World Cup to get another Candidates spot.' The tie-breaker is not for the faint-hearted. The classical format gives you time to remember your preparation and calmly think through a tough situation. The challenge is that of perfection. In contrast, the Rapid and the Blitz formats are all about instinct. The paucity of time often forces your hand and you may miss obvious moves. The challenge here is surviving the chaos. Humpy's mind would have been in turmoil after that early loss but this is where the value of her experience shone through. The 38-year-old had had a pretty barren run in 2024 even considering quitting but she ended the year by winning the women's world rapid championship. She hasn't looked back since. The Rapid title was a big one for Humpy, who has always considered herself to be a more solid classical player and the confidence gained from that would have no doubt helped her on Thursday as well. The Indian, ranked fifth in the world, upped the ante when she needed to against the Chinese world No.3 and by the end, she was clearly the better player on the day. 'It's a very tough match,' Humpy told FIDE during the live broadcast. 'Initially, I played quite bad with the black pieces and she always had the advantage. After the loss, it was a very difficult situation but I was able to come back. I think Lei was very comfortable, even in the last game instead of Bb3, e4 would have just killed the position. I just realised after making the move. But yeah, Blitz was in my control.' In the first Blitz game, Humpy (with white pieces) established a solid position early on but the complex middle game saw the game going into a time scramble before the Indian came out on top. The pressure was now on Lei. She needed to find her best form but Humpy turned in a composed performance to win the tie-breaker 5-3. Humpy and Deshmukh's run to the final means that Indian chess is continuing its brilliant run on the world stage. The women's team won the Olympiad, Humpy is the reigning women's World Rapid champion and D Gukesh is the world classical champion. When asked this result means to India, especially for female Indian chess players, Humpy smiled and spoke of how the country has the title in the bag. 'It's one of the happiest moments for chess fans because now the title is India's for sure,' she said. 'But as a player, it will be quite a tough game as Divya has played tremendously well in this whole tournament.' The winner of the tournament will earn $50,000 but the final is going to be about so much more. Both, Humpy and Deshmukh, are playing some of the best chess of their lives and as things stand, they won't settle for anything less than the crown.
NDTV
5 hours ago
- Sport
- NDTV
History Beckons: India's Koneru Humpy To Meet Divya Deshmukh In FIDE Women's Chess World Cup Final
Grandmaster Koneru Humpy held her nerves to score a come-from-behind victory over China'sTIngjie Lei in the tiebreaker to set up an all-Indian summit clash against Divya Deshmukh at the FIDE Women's World Cup in Batumi, Georgia on Thursday. Humpy will clash with Divya Deshmukh in the final starting after a day's rest starting on Saturday. With Humpy winning, both she and Divya have now qualified for the Women's candidates' tournament next year. Having drawn the first two games in the normal time control Humpy had to settle up with another 1-1 draw in the tiebreaker that comprised two games with 15 minutes for both players with an increment. After two draws here, Humpy had to really work hard in the next set of tiebreak games that had 10 minutes for both players with another increment. Lei got in the lad early in the set of these two games and Humpy erred in the middle game to lose a pawn and get in to a difficult endgame. What followed was pretty logical as Lei got in command and even thought the position was closer to a draw Humpy did not find the best defensive resources to equalize. Humpy lost another pawn on the queen side and despite the presence of opposite coloured Bishops in the endgame, white's influence on both flanks tilted things decisively in her favour. It was a win on demand wherein Humpy dominated the next game. The Queen pawn opening was good enough wherein Humpy was in command right from the word go. Humpy won with her superior technique and also her absolute determination to turn the tide in her favour from any given position. In the third set of tie-break games Humpy drew white in the first game and crushed Lei in all departments of the game. Winning this game meant that just a draw was needed for her to get in to the final and in the return game Humpy was at her technical best as she won again out of an Italian opening. If there is one title that has eluded Humpy it's the World Cup and world championship. Apart that Humpy has won everything under the sun.
Indian Express
5 hours ago
- Sport
- Indian Express
India vs India in FIDE World Cup final: Koneru Humpy beats China's Lei Tingjie to set up Divya Deshmukh battle
With a march of her king in the penultimate blitz game against China's Lei Tingjie, Koneru Humpy, the undisputed queen of Indian chess, barged into the FIDE Women's World Cup Final. In doing so, Humpy set up an India vs India battle for the title, with 19-year-old Divya Deshmukh having confirmed her qualification just yesterday with a win over another Chinese combatant, former women's world champion Tan Zhongyi. At 38, Humpy is twice Divya's age, which sets up a fascinating clash of generations. Humpy has seen a resurgence in her career over the last year, kick-started by her winning the FIDE World Rapid Championship in December last year, her second rapid title after the one in 2019. She had eased up on her events over the past few years to focus on her daughter and family life. 'This is one of the happiest moments for Indian chess fans. The title is coming to India for sure,' Humpy told FIDE in an interview after her win. 'In the final, it will be a tough game, Divya has played tremendously well in this whole tournament.' The presence of two Indian women in the FIDE Women's World Cup final at Georgia's Batumi also means that there will be two Indians at least in the FIDE Women's Candidates Tournament. The Candidates is an eight-player royal rumble to decide the challenger to the women's world champion. Other players like Vaishali Rameshbabu, Harika Dronavalli and Vantika Agrawal will also have further chances to qualify for the Candidates in the coming months, like at the FIDE Grand Swiss or through other pathways. India had its best head count at the previous Candidates tournament when Humpy and Vaishali had qualified. That record is already set to be matched at the upcoming Candidates. Humpy's win was remarkable because it took her eight games over three days to breach the challenge put up by Lei Tingjie in the semi-final. Humpy and Lei played out two draws on Tuesday and Wednesday in the classical format, before tiebreaks on Thursday became necessary. There, the first two games, played with 15 minutes (with a 10 second increment per move) also ended as draws before Lei landed the first punch by winning the first game of the 10 minute (+10 second per move increment) tiebreak. Now, Humpy had to win on demand, or else she would have to battle for the third spot against Tan later this week. Humpy didn't just win the next game, she won the next three. The first win sent the battle into another best-of-two tiebreak, this time to be played in the blitz format with both players having five minutes on the clock with a three-second increment per move. There, both set of queens and rooks marauded the board, smiting and killing at will. At some stage in the middle game, Humpy had an advantage, then the advantage corroded away as the eval bar settled in the middle, then Lei had the edge. Both players were playing with just seconds on their clock. In the heat of this battle, on move 44, came the decisive error from Lei: she pulled back her rook (44… Ra6) instead of moving her queen closer to the king to create an air-tight defence. Humpy capitalised, and soon Lei's queen was off the board. Now came Humpy's moment, with both players having four pawns each, on the same side of the board, Humpy's queen proved too overpowering for Lei's remaining rook. When the resignation came on move 70 from the Chinese GM, Humpy's king had marched down the board and was sitting on the sixth rank with the queen waiting to pounce and deliver a crushing checkmate. Now Lei had to win on demand with white pieces, but she lost instead in 33 moves. 'It was a very tough match, initially I played very badly with black pieces. She always had the advantage. After the loss, it was a very difficult situation but I was able to come back. The blitz portion was in my control. I played a bit shaky in the rapid portion,' admitted Humpy.
