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Journalism of Courage
19-year-old Divya Deshmukh created history by becoming the first-ever Indian woman to win the FIDE Women’s World Cup final defeating veteran Koneru Humpy in the tie-breaker on Monday.
After 24 days of fighting chess in the Georgian city of Batumi, Divya Deshmukh also became eligible to be India’s fourth woman to become a grandmaster, which is significant because before the event started, she had none of the three norms required to become a grandmaster.
Five-time world champion Viswanathan Anand, who was doing commentary for the official live broadcast summed up the final by saying: “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.”
Here is how the world of social media reacted to Divya’s achievements:
Viswanathan Anand took X to congratulate both Divya and Humpy for the stellar finale. He wrote,” Congratulations to @Divyadeshmukh05 on winning the World Cup. Becoming GM and a spot in the candidates. Amazing battle of nerves. @humpy_koneru played a very good event and showed a commendable fighting spirit . The great champion she is! It was a great celebration of Indian chess, particularly Women’s chess.”
Another Chess prodigy and Grandmaster 21-year-old Nihal Sarin posted a photo with Divya from their early days and congratulated her.
He wrote on X,”Congratulations @DivyaDeshmukh05!! First Indian to win the Women’s World Cup! Also congrats on becoming a grandmaster!”
International Chess Federation posted a video of an emotional Divya hugging her mother moments after defeating Humpy with caption, “Divya’s hug to her mom says everything ❤️”. The video has since become viral gaining over 105k views and the whole of India sharing it.
The legendary Polgar sisters also took X to congratulate the Indian teenager.
Susan Polgar wrote,”A star is born & a newly crowned Grandmaster! IM Divya Deshmukh 🇮🇳 defeated GM Humpy Koneru 🇮🇳 in the tiebreaks to win the 2025 Women’s World Cup! What a magnificent feat for this talented and mentally tough young lady!,” while Judit wrote, “Congrats to @DivyaDeshmukh05 🇮🇳, who has clinched the 2025 Women’s Chess World Cup title, defeating her compatriot Koneru Humpy in a tense tiebreak.Indian chess is just unbelievable.”
Chessbase India posted a video from 2017 where an 11-year-old Divya can be seen talking about fighting till the end.
The Indian president Droupadi Murmu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi also congratulated Divya for her achievements.
“A historic final featuring two outstanding Indian chess players! Proud of the young Divya Deshmukh on becoming FIDE Women’s World Chess Champion 2025. Congratulations to her for this remarkable feat, which will inspire several youngsters. Koneru Humpy has also displayed immense prowess throughout the championship,” PM Modi wrote on X.
