Indian Grandmasters Koneru Humpy and Divya Deshmukh drew their respective matches in Game-1 of the semi-finals of the ongoing Women’s Chess World Cup 2025 in Georgia. On Tuesday night, Koneru Humpy played a comfortable draw with black pieces against China’s Tingjie Lei. While Divya Deshmukh’s strong defence prevented former world champion Zhongyi Tan from winning the first game.
Both the Indian stars will play with white pieces in Game-2 against their respective opponents on Wednesday. If the tournament ends in a tie, then tie-breaker matches with less timing (Rapid/Blitz) will be played to decide the winner.The tournament is also special as three spots for the next Women’s Candidates Tournament are at stake, meaning at least one Indian player is sure to be selected.
India’s top player Koneru Humpy sprung a big surprise against Tingjie Lei in an opening that is not usually seen at the top level. The Chinese player was shocked in the fourth move and had limited options to equalise. The contest continued even after the queens were exchanged mid-game, but the presence of opposite-coloured bishops ensured Humpy was never in danger.
Divya adopted a strategy to balance the game right from the beginning against Zhongyi Tan. Zhongyi is a player who has had a brilliant career in the world of women’s chess. She started the game with the ‘Queen’s Gambit Declined’ opening.