The championship
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FIDE Women’s World Cup: Divya Deshmukh Shocks World No. 2 Zhu Jiner; Other Indians Play Out Draws
The FIDE Women: India’s Divya Deshmukh pulled off one of the biggest upsets of the FIDE Women’s World Cup so far, defeating world No. 2 Zhu Jiner in the first game of their pre-quarterfinal clash in Batumi, Georgia, on Wednesday.
Playing with the white pieces, the 18-year-old Divya displayed strategic maturity and exceptional composure against the Chinese star, who is the tournament’s second seed and one of the title favourites. In a tightly controlled game, Divya built her position gradually, maintained pressure through the middlegame, and capitalised on Zhu’s inaccuracies to close out a memorable win.
With a 1-0 lead in the two-game match, Divya now finds herself one draw away from reaching the quarterfinals—an achievement that would make her only the second Indian woman ever to reach this stage of the Women’s World Cup after Harika Dronavalli in 2023.
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