In sports, there are very instances when one can say 'Jeetega toh India hi' (India will only win). One can't say it in cricket, hockey, badminton or any sports. But, in Chess, you can safely say nowadays that India will only win because of the depth in the sport. The 2025 Chess World Cup in Batumi was the culmination of the dominance that India possess.
Consider the circumstances. The clash between Koneru Humpy and Divya Deshmukh was dubbed 'Clash of Generations'. Humpy, a bonafide great and an inspiration for many women chess players in India, was up against an opponent who is half her age. Humpy has had a remarkable second wind, having quit the sport having become a mother only to bounce back and win two World Rapid titles. On the other hand, Divya has achieved significant gains when it comes to Olympiad and Junior events.
DIVYA THE STUDENT BETTERS HUMPY THE TEACHER
Heading into the World Cup, Humpy was considered one of the favourites to win the title. Divya, on the other hand, was slated to cause a flutter. But, as the World Cup progressed, both reached the crescendo. Divya beat top Chinese players like Zhu Jiner and Tan Zhongyi. In addition, Divya had beaten Hou Yifan, the world number one last month during the World Rapid and Blitz Championships. That itself had won appreciation from Prime Minister Narendra Modi. On the other hand, Humpy had beaten Lei Tingjie and Alexandra Kosteniuk.
The final saw both players try and create chances, but in the end it was a draw. Heading into the rapid tiebreaks, one felt that Humpy was the favourite as she was the two-time world rapid champion. But, Divya had an edge. She had beaten Humpy in the rapid leg of the Tata Steel Masters last year. In the final at Bantumi, it was Divya who was trying to create chances. Game 1 was a psychological battle, with Divya only agreeing for the draw after there was no possible counterplay.
In game 2, it was a dead draw. But one major blunder from Humpy opened the game up. Divya almost messed it up in the quest to be aggressive. But Humpy's final fatal blunder under time pressure gave Divya the title. The match was a fitting testament to her play. A drawish opening relies on a blunder. Plus, the early blitzing of moves that Divya had done gave her a significant time cushion. Humpy took too long and that was the reason which saw her blunder not once, but twice. The World Cup win was a clear message that Divya the student, had managed to overcome Humpy, the teacher, in the most dramatic of circumstances.
DIVYA'S SUCCESS EQUALS INDIA'S DOMINANCE
Divya Deshmukh's win against Koneru Humpy is the icing on the cake not just for women's chess but India Chess in general. Ever since Gukesh qualified for the Candidates in December 2023, India had enjoyed unprecedented success at all levels.
Gukesh won the Candidates, then followed it up with double gold individually and for the team. The same is true for Divya. She was the star in the Olympiad as she won individual and team gold as India achieved the historic double. Gukesh's win in the World Championship against Ding Liren brought Chess back into the nation's conscience after 11 long years.
Since then, Gukesh's success has resulted in a slipstream impact where others are also enjoying. Praggnanandhaa winning UzChess, Tata Steel Chess and Superbet Romania. Gukesh has beaten Magnus Carlsen in rapid and classical, both historic. The classical one was in Carlsen's own sentinel in Stavanger, Norway. It was a glorious cycle, with Gukesh doing to Magnus was Magnus did to Viswanathan Anand in 2013 in Chennai. Arjun Erigaisi continues to shine, while Nihal Sarin also had success. In the Junior category, Pranav Venkatesh is the world junior champion, while India won three gold medals in FIDE World Cup Cadets 2025 in Under-10 and Under-12 events in Georgia
Divya's success is only the continuation of the success slipstream. Now, all attention turns to 2026, in which Divya and Humpy have a chance to win the Candidates. If an Indian wins the Candidates in both the Open and Women's categories, then one can truly say that the dominance of Indian Chess is no fluke. The hard work in 2025 is done. Now, the success has to be sustained in 2025.
The above piece has been written by our in-house chess expert Siddharth Viswanathan.