Divya Deshmukh Becomes Women's World Cup Champion
Following a 24-day chess tournament in Batumi, Georgia, Divya Deshmukh emerged victorious in the FIDE Women's World Cup final, defeating the seasoned Koneru Humpy through tiebreaks.
Before the competition began, Divya lacked all three of the requirements needed to become a grandmaster, hence her victory in the Women's World Cup also qualifies her as India's fourth female grandmaster.
The match was believed to be a contest between Indians, with Tan Zhongyi and Lei Tingjie, two Chinese celebrities, competing for third place.
There have only been two female grandmasters since Humpy became GM. Today's victory puts Divya on that elusive list.
“I think it was fate, me getting the grandmaster title this way,” an emotional Divya said right after her win. “Before the tournament, I didn’t even have one norm. I was thinking that I could maybe earn a grandmaster norm here. And at the end, I became a grandmaster.”
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One of Divya’s first reactions after winning the title was: “I definitely need to learn endgames.”
After the first game finished in a draw on Monday, Humpy's mistake helped Divya win the second tiebreak match.
In his commentary for the official live broadcast, five-time world champion Viswanathan Anand summed up the final as follows: “Dramatic! Humpy just collapsed. It was totally self-inflicted. This was one of those situations where your nerves get the better of you, and there’s nothing you can do about it.”
Following Divya's victory, the playing hall was filled with tearful moments as she sought her mother.
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Humpy and Divya have drawn their first two traditional matches. With white pieces, Divya had the best chance of winning the opening game, which took place last week. She arrived with a strategy and gained a significant edge on the board. However, she fumbled her lines at the end, letting Humpy equalize.
Since the matches were played in a rapid format and Humpy won the World Rapid Champion title for the second time in her career in December of last year, Divya, an International Master, was the underdog going into the tiebreaks. According to the FIDE ratings list for women, Humpy is now ranked number five in the world, while Divya is ranked number eighteen (the fourth-ranked Indian on the list). Humpy is ranked far higher than the Nagpur adolescent in other formats as well: Humpy is ranked number 10 in the globe and Divya is ranked number 22. In Blitz, Divya is ranked number eighteen, while the veteran is ranked number ten among women worldwide.
In the past, Humpy was a prodigy, just like Divya. At the age of 15 years, 1 month, and 27 days, Humpy really broke Judit Polgar's record by three months to become the youngest woman to win the grandmaster title.