Divya Deshmukh, the 19-year-old International Master from Nagpur, Maharashtra, etched her name into chess history by defeating Grandmaster Humpy Koneru 1.5–0.5 in the tiebreaks to win the Women’s World Cup.
She now follows in the footsteps of GM Alexandra Kosteniuk (2021) and GM Aleksandra Goryachkina (2023) as the third-ever winner of this prestigious title.
In the two 15+10 rapid tiebreak games, Divya showed both resilience and composure. After missing a golden opportunity in the first game, which ended in a draw, she brought elite-level precision to the second. There, she equalised comfortably as Black, then seized control as Humpy slipped under time pressure—clinching the crown in emphatic fashion.
With this remarkable win, Divya is now not only the 2025 Women’s World Cup Champion, but also one of the most exciting young stars in the world of chess.
After the final game, an emotional Divya embraced her mother before giving a short interview: “It’s hard for me to speak now. Of course, this definitely means a lot, but there is a lot more to achieve, so I am hoping that this is just the start,” she said.
The 2025 FIDE Women’s World Cup took place from July 6th to July 28th in Batumi (Georgia) and brought together the world’s best female chess players. A total of 107 players from 46 different federations participated in the event, including seventeen of the current top twenty!
Chess legends, seasoned professionals and emerging talents contested for the $50,000 first prize, in addition to three qualifying spots for the Candidates.
