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Judit Polgar impressed with Divya Deshmukh's Women's World Cup victory, says ‘Indian chess is unbelievable! But do…'
Judit Polgar was impressed with ‘Indian chess’ as Divya Deshmukh beat Koneru Humpy in an all-Indian FIDE Women's World Cup final.
Divya Deshmukh wasn’t even a Grandmaster before the FIDE Women’s Chess World Cup 2025 final. But now she is India’s 88th Grandmaster, virtue of her victory against Koneru Humpy in the title clash. Divya’s rise is just like a Hollywood movie and reaching the final also saw her book a berth at the Candidates Tournament.
The 19-year-old was visibly emotional as she couldn’t believe that she beat the much-experienced Humpy. She broke down in tears and took some time to process the moment and then went straight to her mother, who was at the sidelines. They hugged each other and her mother calmed her down.
Also Read: Vishy Anand drops verdict on Divya Deshmukh's FIDE Women's Chess World Cup win, consoles Koneru Humpy after thriller
Judit Polgar on Divya Deshmukh
Reacting to Divya’s win, chess legend Judit Polgar took to X to hail the youngster for winning a ‘tense tiebreak’.
“Congrats to@DivyaDeshmukh05, who has clinched the 2025 Women’s Chess World Cup title, defeating her compatriot Koneru Humpy in a tense tiebreak,” wrote Polgar.
“Indian chess is just unbelievable! But do not forget: it has reasons”, she further added.
India has seen a huge rise in chess lately, especially since D Gukesh became the men’s World Champion last year. Meanwhile, the likes of Humpy, R Praggnanandhaa, Arjun Erigaisi and R Vaishali have been putting in dominant displays.
The win also saw Divya climb to 15th position in the Classical live chess rankings, from 18th.
The final saw both classical games end in draws on Saturday and Sunday. Then in the tie-breaks, Divya won 1.5-0.5, winning the second Rapid game The first Rapid game ended in a draw.
Meanwhile, her emotional reaction after her win has broken the internet, with videos of the moment going viral on social media. Fans have been impressed by her underdog story, with everyone congratulating the Nagpur native on X.
Even Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Indian chess legend Viswanathan Anand took to X to pass on their congratulations.
