Special Correspondent
July 31, 2025
WINNERS are always unsatisfied with their performances. They yearn for more. Without trophies and crowns in their bag, they feel empty. They remain hungry for more success, always, even if they have won a title a day ago or a month back. Whenever they step into a new battlefield, they search for another title.
Newly-crowned Women Chess World Cup winner and Grandmaster Divya Deshmukh is no different. She is not satisfied with what she has achieved in her short career. Divya has every trophy in her Shankar Nagar residence cupboard. Be it a cadet girls’ crown or chess Olympiad gold medals, Junior World crown or Senior Women World Cup. Yet, she feels she has won nothing. Hence, when The Hitavada’ asked her whether she is satisfied with what she has achieved thus far, the answer came in negative.
“No, I am not satisfied. I think this is just the beginning and I definitely want to achieve more,” she replied during a press conference organised by Maharashtra Chess Association President Parinay Fuke on Thursday evening.
Flanked by her parents — Dr Jirendra and Dr Namrata Deshmukh — who both tried to avoid the media and the limelight which came to them due to their daughter’s heroics, Divya ‘opened’ the presser confidently. During the ‘middle game’ when the queries were a bit repetitive, she ‘moved her pieces’ (read answers) calmly as she knew that repeating the same answers thrice won’t ‘draw the game’ like in chess. With a bright smile on her face, Divya coolly replied to the same queries, like, when asked how was the feeling when she won the final against Koneru Humpy... how she felt by the reception at Nagpur Airport?..
Her replies were stitched with enthusiasm.
“I am grateful to the crowd for such a huge reception. The way they came out to celebrate my victory, it feels great to see chess getting such a huge response. I don’t have much to say. I am just thankful,” Divya repeated the same answer on a few occasions.
The ‘middle game’ queries continued and maturity reflected in her replies.
Divya did admit that she realised late that she was on cusp of winning the world title. “I realised quite late that I am in a winning position. Also, it was a rapid format and I did not have much time to process that I had won the final. My first reaction was... I just cried and searched for my mother who was not allowed inside the hall during the final,” Divya narrated the last moments of the exciting final.
The World Cup winner once again said that this win will help chess grow further, especially among girls.
“Just last December, Humpy won the World Rapid Championship and now, this win, I think, it will (give) boost (to) chess specially among young girls.”
There was a sweet little chuckle when she was compared with former India cricket captain MS Dhoni’s attacking style of play.
When asked about this style of play, Divya said, “There was always an aggressiveness in my style of play. I think, on a chess board, I am an aggressive player. It is easier for me to go into tactics with aggression, so I think that’s just my style of play.”
Divya lauded her senior opponent Humpy’s performance in the final, but said that, the first game loss with white was due to her own failure.
“It was more to do with my failure than her success. I was quite upset after the first game because I was in a very good position and I knew I didn’t play well. So, it definitely added more pressure in the second game as I was playing with the black pieces. But I gained confidence after the second game (which she drew to take the game into the tie-breaker round.) Yes, Humpy is a world rapid champion and I respect her a lot, But you can’t play with that (opponent’s world champion) tag behind your mind so I don’t think that there was any pressure because I was confident in my abilities,” Divya explained how she went into the final.
She also said that the similarity in her and Gukesh’s game is their attacking style of play.
“We both started playing chess at the same age. We both play attacking games and that’s the similarity in our style of play.”
Divya, who is now a Grandmaster as well as a world champ, said that these twin tags won’t put any added pressure on her.
“The pressure has been there for many years. But after a point it doesn’t matter whether there is a pressure of 100 players or a lakh players. For me what matters is my expectations and my own goals. So obviously, p
ressure always remains there but I try not to think much about it.”
Divya once again said that it was a proud feeling to carry the national flag and listen to the National Anthem. “I felt very proud when the National Anthem was played. Anyway, it was to be played as we both were Indians, but it was played because I won.. I felt really proud,” she said.
Despite Nagpur now boasting of three Grandmasters with Raunak Sadhwani and Sankalp Gupta being the other two, Divya rated Chennai as the hub of chess in the country.
“No I don’t think so. Chennai is way ahead of us (Nagpur) and there is no comparison. Chess is more popular in the Southern part of India. But yes, I would love to see chess get more popular in Nagpur and the younger generation get attracted to the game,” Divya frankly said.
Divya revealed that she never knew that she would become a Grandmaster if she wins the World Cup.
“I was totally unaware about getting the GM title prior to this tournament. When I reached the semi-final then I came to know that I got the first norm. And then I got to know that if I win this tournament I would be a GM. I was very happy but I wanted to concentrate on the remaining matches and did not want to put any added pressure on myself,” said Divya even as GM Abhijit Kunte posed a satisfied look.
The ‘end game’ was more tiring and exhausting for Divya with TV channels, portals and youtubers mobbing her for ‘exclusive interviews’.
This was not the first time Divya was giving so many interviews.
“Not at all. I have given many more interviews on the go once in Delhi,” she told this newspaper.
One after another, the video camera lights flashed on Divya’s face and she cleverly replied in ‘rapid format’ before the cameramen were ‘pushed to the corner’ and Divya emerged ‘champion’ once again.
However, that’s not the end as felicitations and interviews will continue and Divya will keep on ‘winning’ them until she is satisfied.
