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Divya Deshmukh, 19, became India’s first FIDE Women’s World Cup winner, defeating GM Koneru Humpy in four games and earning her Grandmaster status as India’s 88th GM.
Divya Deshmukh left in tears after her win (X)
When the stakes are high, emotions will overflow. They sure did for India’s newest GM, Divya Deshmukh, who couldn’t hold her tears back after winning the coveted FIDE Women’s World Cup on Monday, becoming the first-ever Indian to achieve the feat.
Divya put away veteran Indian GM Koneru Humpy after four games (2 classical+2 Rapid tiebreaks) to seal the title with a score of 2.5-1.5, and along the way, also earned the nod to become a Grandmaster (India’s 88th GM).
The young Indian, who battled it out against Humpy in three consecutive draws, found her window of opportunity when the veteran blundered unexpectedly.
Finally, after 75 moves, Humpy folded, gifting Divya the title.
The Indian players, who were left tied at 1-1 each after the two classical games in the Final, entered the tiebreaks today to decide the ultimate winner.
So, it all boiled down to two Rapid matches of 10 minutes with a 10-second increment after every move.
Having won the toss the previous night, Divya once again got the luck of the draw, opting to start the tiebreaks with the white pieces in the first Rapid game.
In Rapid Game 1, Divya played her natural game, attacking Humpy out of the gate and forcing the veteran to yet again burn the clock early. With no second time control in the tiebreaks, the pressure was on Humpy to yet again find the draw.
She did nothing but the same, as the cold-blooded, calm veteran started to push with her queen, taking the attack to the youngster.
The pressure ultimately forced Divya to make an error, who blundered and left her central pawn unguarded, opening the gates for Humpy to come in for the attack.
Humpy tempted Divya to take a Queen Exchange, which was denied, and then, with the clock ticking, was forced to sacrifice her Queen in a last-ditch attempt to find the kill.
But, as fate would have it, the duo ultimately decided on the inevitable draw, preparing to play for all glory in the second Rapid game.
More of the same from the first Rapid game ensued in the second game as well, as Humpy was yet again pushed to her limits, as Divya forced the veteran to burn down her clock effectively.
That is, until the blunder happened. And then, the rest was history.
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A team of reporters, writers and editors brings you live updates, breaking news, opinions and photos from the wide world of sport. Follow @News18Sports
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