The Full Story of Divya Deshmukh, From Under-7 National Champion to FIDE Women’s World Cup Winner

The 19-year-old Divya Deshmukh stunned the chess world by winning the FIDE Women’s World Cup 2025, becoming the first Indian woman to claim the prestigious title. In the all-Indian final, Divya defeated legendary compatriot Koneru Humpy 1.5–0.5 in the rapid tie-breaks on Monday to script a fairytale ending in Baku.

The classical games played over the weekend had ended in tense draws, with both players showcasing resilience and elite-level play. In Saturday's opening game, Divya, playing with the white pieces, built a commanding position but let Humpy equalise late. The second game on Sunday was more balanced, though Divya admitted she “wandered into trouble for no apparent reason” before holding on.

Daughter of doctors, Divya balanced studies and chess to emerge as a World Champion and India’s 88th Grandmaster (Photos: IANS)

But the tie-breaks were where the young sensation flipped the script. After the first rapid game ended in a draw, the second saw Humpy crack under time pressure, making critical blunders that Divya pounced on. With nerves of steel, Divya closed out the win to become the 2025 Women’s World Cup champion, the fourth Indian woman to earn the Grandmaster title, and the country’s 88th GM overall.

“It was fate,” said an emotional Divya after the final. “Before the tournament, I was thinking that I could maybe earn a Grandmaster norm here. And at the end, I became a Grandmaster.”

Divya’s victory is even more remarkable considering the odds. She came into the tie-breaks as the underdog — Humpy, a two-time World Rapid Champion and currently world No. 5 in classical chess, was widely expected to dominate in the faster format. In contrast, Divya was ranked No. 18 in classical, No. 22 in rapid, and No. 18 in blitz on the FIDE women’s list.

This win crowns a sensational rise for the Nagpur teenager, who just last year clinched the World Junior Championship title. She played a pivotal role in India’s gold medal run at the 2024 Chess Olympiad in Budapest, also securing individual gold on her board.

Divya has now become the 88th Grandmaster from India and only the fourth Indian woman to achieve this. She also won prize money of USD 50000 for this victory.

Divya was born on December 9, 2005. Her parents Dr Jitendra and Dr Namratha Deshmukh are both doctors and they always supported her in her journey. She was introduced to sports by watching her elder sister play badminton but Divya got interested in chess when she was just five years old.

She started learning the game and soon began winning in age group competitions. She studied at Bhavan’s Bhagwandas Purohit Vidya Mandir in Nagpur and continued her school education while playing chess. Later, she started studying subjects like sports psychology and data science to improve her thinking and performance in chess.

Her journey in chess began with a bang. At the age of six, she won the India Under 7 Championship. She then went on to become World Youth Champion in the Under 10 category in South Africa and later won the Under 12 title in Brazil.

With nerves of steel, Divya defeated Koneru Humpy in the rapid tie-breaks to become India’s new chess queen

She became a Woman Grandmaster in 2021 and kept improving her game. In 2022 she won the India Women’s Chess Championship and in 2023 she won the Asian Women’s Championship held in Kazakhstan.

In the same year she surprised everyone by winning the Tata Steel Rapid tournament in Kolkata where she defeated top players like Ju Wenjun, Humpy and Harika. In June 2024 she won the World Under 20 Girls Championship by scoring 10 points out of 11 and remained unbeaten throughout the tournament. This made her only the fourth Indian woman to win the junior world title.

Divya also played an important role in the Indian women’s team at the Chess Olympiad in Budapest in September 2024. She scored 9.5 out of 11 on board three and won an individual gold medal.

Her performance helped India win the team gold for the first time in history. In another tournament in London in June 2025 she got her first victory over former world number one Hou Yifan in a long and exciting game.

From a small girl with big dreams in Nagpur to becoming a world champion and Grandmaster Divya Deshmukh’s journey is full of inspiration for young players across the country. Her story shows that with talent hard work and family support nothing is impossible. –IANS with inputs from TWL Bureau