CHENNAI: Divya Deshmukh was so visibly spent she had no energy. When asked to reflect, all she managed was a tired smile. For the previous five hours and change — the second tie of her women’s World Cup semifinal against Tan Zhongyi — and a 100+ moves, she had gone through the whole gamut of emotions. She was losing. She was winning. She was winning completely. She had missed several chances. Then, at the very end, the former world champion, Zhongyi, had made one too many inaccuracies.
This time, the 19-year-old, still only an IM, capitalised. By virtue of this win, she has also qualified for the next edition of the women’s Candidates in 2026 as well as earning a GM norm. She’s one of the youngest players to qualify for the Candidates in decades. Up a few pawns in a rook endgame, she was threatening to queen her b pawn.
The engines said she was within 20 moves of checkmate. That’s when Zhongyi resigned handing the Indian her biggest victory till date. Even before the Chinese shook hands, Deshmukh, who used to travel to Chennai for classes as a child, was overwhelmed by what was about to happen. Like she had done a few times over the last week in Batumi, a tear or two escaped her eyes.
It’s only logical because the last three players she took down includes Zhu Jiner, D Harika and now Zhongyi. Beating three established GMs back-to-back in a course of a week can be an immense challenge for any IM, especially someone as young as her. She now has the chance to rest for a couple of days before the final where she will either face compatriot Koneru Humpy or China’s Lie Tingjie.