Koneru Humpy made history as she became the first Indian woman to reach the semifinals of the FIDE Women's Chess World Cup in Batumi, Georgia. The Indian Grandmaster sealed her place in the final four following a draw in the second game of her quarterfinal against China’s IM Song Yuxin. Showing her strategic approach and control over the game, Humpy held on despite a few minor inaccuracies. Eventually, Yuxin offered a draw, resulting in Humpy's historic progression.

Humpy played for a draw after taking the lead earlier in the quarterfinal by winning the first game of the two-game series on Saturday. In another quarterfinal, Harika Dronavalli and rising star Divya Deshmukh engaged in a close contest in an all-Indian clash.

Divya opted for the Slav Defense: Modern Line while playing with the white pieces, but experienced Harika managed to keep her at bay throughout. The contest stretched to 60 moves. The winner is expected to be determined on Monday.

However, R Vaishali, the other Indian in the fray, exited the tournament after an impressive campaign, following a loss to China's third seed, Tan Zhongyi.

Lei Tingjie, the top seed from China, remained the most dominant player, beating local favorite Nana Dzagnidze to advance to the semifinals.

Tingjie will now face India’s Humpy in the semifinal, while Tan Zhongyi awaits the result of the quarterfinal between Harika and Divya. Besides the prestigious title at stake in the World Cup, the tournament also offers direct spots to the FIDE Candidates for the top three finishers.

With at least one Indian assured of a semifinal berth from the Harika-Divya tie, India is guaranteed representation in the next stage of the World Championship cycle.

Quarterfinal results: Koneru Humpy (Ind) beat Yuxin Song (Chn) 1.5-0.5; Nana Dzagnidze (Geo) lost to Tingjie Lei (Chn) 0-2; R Vaishali (Ind) lost to Tan Zhongyi (Chn) 0.5-1.5; Divya Deshmukh (Ind) drew with D Harika (Ind) 1-1 goes to tiebreaker.