Chess World Cup: Won the title! 19-year-old Divya Deshmukh became the chess world champion
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The Indian chess world has got another proud moment today. 19-year-old Divya Deshmukh of Nagpur has created history by winning the FIDE Women’s World Cup 2025. With this, Divya has also become India’s fourth female grandmaster.
This match took place in Batumi, Georgia. Where Divya won the title on the basis of her intelligence, aggressive strategy and patience. In the final, she faced India’s legendary grandmaster Koneru Humpy.
FIDE Women’s Chess World Cup 2025 Final 19-year-old Divya Deshmukh Winner
Both the classical matches of the final were played on Saturday and Sunday which ended in a draw. The score was 1-1 and now all eyes were on the rapid round. This is where Divya turned the tables.
In the first rapid game, she made a strong start playing with white pieces. But Humpy got that match drawn. This made it seem that experience could be heavy. But in the second rapid game, Divya started putting pressure from the beginning by playing with black pieces. Humpy missed the time pressure. Divya took advantage of this opportunity and finished the game.
🇮🇳 Divya Deshmukh wins the 2025 FIDE Women’s World Cup! 🏆
🥇 Divya Deshmukh 🇮🇳
🥈 Humpy Koneru 🇮🇳
🥉 Tan Zhongyi 🇨🇳Results – Final:
🇮🇳 Divya Deshmukh 2.5-1.5 Humpy Koneru 🇮🇳
🇨🇳 Tan Zhongyi 1.5-0.5 Lei Tingjie 🇨🇳#FIDEWorldCup pic.twitter.com/NDtnO4pPXU— International Chess Federation (@FIDE_chess) July 28, 2025
The third position of this tournament was secured by China’s Lei Tingjie. She won the second round of the playoff against Zhongi Ten and secured the third position.
China’s dominance broken, India shines
This victory is being considered even bigger because China has the most top players in the women’s chess ranking. There are 14 players in the top 100. Whereas India has only 9. But this time both Divya and Humpy defeated the Chinese challenge and made it to the finals and hoisted the flag of India.
Daughter of Nagpur, pride of the nation
Divya Deshmukh is currently ranked 18th in the world rankings. But her victory is not just limited to rankings. It is a great inspiration for the coming generation. A young player reaching this level shows that anything is possible with hard work, preparation and confidence.
