A day after Grandmaster Koneru Humpy made history by becoming the first Indian to reach the semifinals of the FIDE Women's World Cup, Divya Deshmukh followed in her footsteps to become only the second Indian woman to achieve the feat. The young International Master from Nagpur stunned Grandmaster Harika Dronavalli in Batumi, Georgia, on Monday to continue her rapid rise in international chess. In an intense rapid tiebreak, Divya notched up a clean 2-0 win, eliminating one of India’s most renowned women’s chess players and advancing to the semifinals.

With this win, Divya joined her compatriot Humpy, and the stage is now set for an India-China clash in the World Cup. Chinese top seeds GM Lei Tingjie and GM Tan Zhongyi are their opponents in the last four. While Humpy is set to face off against Tingjie, Divya will take on former Women’s World Champion Zhongyi in the semifinals on Tuesday.

Besides qualification for the final, three spots are also at stake for the prestigious Women’s Candidates Tournament. The qualifiers—who will be determined based on the results in the semifinals—will join GM Alexandra Goryachkina and GM Zhu Jiner, who have already secured their spots via the Women’s Grand Prix.

Reflecting on her win, which came after Harika’s resignation, an emotional Divya told FIDE, “I think I’m happy with the way I played, but I don’t think the second game went very well.”

After two placid draws in the classical games, the pressure was on Harika in the rapid tiebreaks. Divya, however, stayed firm and capitalised with a determined performance to win the first game, before sealing the match in the second as Harika, in a must-win situation, looked stressed in search of a miracle that never came.

In the first game, Divya employed the Italian Opening and did not buckle under pressure despite facing an experienced opponent in Harika, who was outdone in the middlegame while trying to find serious counterplay. The latter ended up committing a miscalculation, which cost her the queen for two white pieces - making things easier for Divya.

In the return game, Harika had to win, but Divya defended strongly and clinched the game. It marked a generational shift in Indian chess. With youth, composure, and a fearless approach, she is proving to be a serious contender on the world stage - and perhaps a future challenger for the Women’s World Championship title.