In a landmark moment for Indian chess, 19-year-old Divya Deshmukh from Nagpur etched her name in history by winning the FIDE Women’s World Cup, outplaying veteran Grandmaster Koneru Humpy in a tense tie-breaker on Monday.
After two fiercely contested classical games ended in draws over the weekend, the championship was decided in the rapid tie-breaks, where Divya’s resilience and sharp calculation earned her the biggest title of her career so far.
With this victory, she has also sealed her place in the prestigious Candidates Tournament, putting her in contention for a shot at the Women’s World Championship.
Already a decorated prodigy with multiple Olympiad gold medals and titles at the Asian, World Youth, and World Junior Championships, Divya’s latest triumph marks her official rise into the elite ranks.
She is now only the fourth Indian woman to achieve the Grandmaster (GM) title, joining the legendary Humpy, R. Vaishali, and Harika Dronavalli. She also becomes India’s 88th GM overall.
In her post-match interview with FIDE, Divya expressed disbelief and joy:
“I need time to process it. I think it was fate. I didn’t even have a single GM norm before this tournament. I was still wondering where I’d get one. And now I’m a Grandmaster.”
Despite the victory, Divya was self-critical and acknowledged room for improvement, particularly in her endgame technique:
“I need to learn endgames. I messed up somewhere for sure. It should have been easier.”
The final tie-breaker saw strategic depth and nerves of steel on full display. In the first rapid game, Divya employed the Petroff Defence and entered an isolated queen pawn middle game.
A pawn sacrifice gave Humpy temporary initiative, but time pressure forced her to return the material. The game levelled out with Humpy holding a rook, bishop, and pawn versus Divya’s queen, ending in a draw.
In the return game, Humpy chose the Catalan Opening, but Divya’s prep was spot-on. After neutralising Humpy’s early pawn sacrifice, the game entered an equal queen-and-rook endgame.
Then, on move 40, Humpy pushed too hard with a risky pawn sacrifice. Though Divya missed a cleaner win, she still transitioned into a slightly better rook-and-pawn endgame.
As time pressure mounted, Humpy faltered again, and Divya seized the moment—clinching a theoretically won position. The victory was a testament to Divya’s patience, nerves, and growing maturity.
For Koneru Humpy, who has been India’s most consistent female chess player for over two decades—with two World Rapid titles, Asian Games golds, and countless international laurels—this was a tough loss, but one marked by grace and sportsmanship.
Reflecting on her win, Divya remained grounded:
“It means a lot, but there’s still so much to achieve. I hope this is just the beginning.”