On Monday, July 28, rising Indian chess champion Divya Deshmukh defeated her countrywoman Koneru Humpy to win the FIDE Women’s World Cup 2025 final.
With the victory, Deshmukh also becomes the 88th Indian to win the title of chess grandmaster, which is an enormous distinction for the 19-year-old.
Divya Deshmukh in Chess World Cup 2025
In addition, she is the fourth Indian woman to receive the title, following Harika Dronavalli, R Vaishali, and Humpy.
Since Humpy and Deshmukh were required to place in the top three in the World Cup in order to qualify for the Candidates event, which was scheduled for 2026, they were both assured of a spot.
The young player will, however, enter the Candidates as the World Cup winner, which will greatly benefit both her and Indian chess in general.
Divya Seals Glory in Tense Tiebreak
It was always going to be a highly anticipated matchup between Deshmukh, one of India’s emerging stars, and the seasoned Humpy, who became a grandmaster in 2022.
Additionally, it was anticipated to be a close game, and that is precisely how it turned out: after their first two games ended in draws, the match moved into tie-breaks on Monday, July 28.
And Divya was able to make the breakthrough in the tiebreaks, ultimately winning 1.5-0.5 to earn the title of both grandmaster and World Cup champion.
From Draws to Domination
Rapid games begin the tiebreaks, and like the first two classical games, they both ended in a draw, giving each team 0.5 points. Deshmukh used the white pieces in this round.
The game’s pivotal moment, however, occurred in the following round when Deshmukh, now equipped with the black pieces, won handily and declared herself the FIDE Women’s World Cup champion.
She will now participate in the Candidates in 2026, when, if she advances, she will face Chinese women’s chess world champion Ju Wenjun.
