By Paritosh Pramanik
July 30, 2025
I’m unstoppable
I’m a Porsche with no brakes
I’m invincible
Yeah, I win every single game
I’m so powerful
I don’t need batteries to play
I’m so confident
Yeah, I’m unstoppable today
Unstoppable today.. Unstoppable today..
What powerful lyrics by Australian singer Sia!
Ditto what the newly-crowned Women’s Chess World Cup winner Nagpur’s Divya Deshmukh did at Batumi in Georgia during her “exhausting 25 days” where she dethroned some big names in the world of chess to become the first Indian to claim the world title.
Divya repeatedly listened to the song ‘Unstoppable’ and followed every word it to the T.
‘I’m unstoppable’
She was unstoppable during the entire tournament winning match after match.
‘I’m a Porsche with no brakes’
She moved in the tournament like a Porsche without brakes as she vroomed ahead of others.
‘I’m invincible, ‘Yeah, I win every single game’
She looked invincible and lost only one game against Zhu Jiner of China in the fourth round but bounced back to beat her in the tie-breaker.
‘I’m so powerful, I don’t need batteries to play’
Winning all but one game, Divya looked powerful with her attacking style of play. She overpowered her opponents with her calculated moves and never looked drained.
She never needed any break or refreshment to get recharged, even though she kept a banana beside her board, in case of need. But that need didn’t arise as she was hungry for the world title.
‘I’m so confident’
Yes, she was confident. She charged onto her opponents and never looked defeatable, even when she made some mistakes in the first game of the final against Koneru Humpy.
‘Yeah, I’m unstoppable today. Unstoppable....’
Following the lyrics penned by Sia, Divya was unstoppable in the second tie-breaker of the final and pushed the much acclaimed, double her age Humpy to the backfoot to romp home.
“I don’t listen to any specific type of music. I love to listen to songs in different languages — English, Hindi, Marathi, Punjabi, even Telugu and Tamil.
“For this tournament, I repeatedly listened to the song ‘Unstoppable’ by Sia. That’s what spurred me, gave me confidence, helped me in conquering my opponents,” said Divya in an exclusive interview to ‘The Hitavada’ on Tuesday before she boarded the flight back home.
The prize distribution ceremony, too, was emotional for Divya. She had carried the Indian flag around her shoulders on many occasions but this time it was different. She neatly folded the tricolour and draped it around her shoulders as she walked towards the podium.
Humpy, at the second spot and Chinese Tan Zhongyi at third waited for the new champion.
Divya stepped onto the middle of the podium and received the coveted trophy as the National Anthem was being played in the background.
“It was a very emotional moment when I draped the tricolour across my shoulders and stood as a champion on the podium. I am a very emotional girl and love my country. It was the biggest honour to hear the National Anthem being played in another country, so it was a very emotional moment for me,” she narrated the moment of glory.
On the eve of the final match, Divya’s mother Dr Namrata tried to keep her daughter’s nerves calm. “We discussed a few things and my mom only asked me to be calm and trust my abilities. She also asked me to manage my time better,” said Divya.
“I was definitely under a lot of pressure and my mom calmed me down. Every mom knows how to calm their kids and my mom is the same. She kept on telling me to keep faith in my abilities,” Divya added.
“Not only my mother but my entire family has a big role in my success...not only my parents and sister but also my uncle, my aunt, my aaji, my cousin brother... all are very helpful and they are the pillars of my strength,” said Divya.
The two-time national champion has a habit to talk to father Dr Jitendra when on tours and she did the same in Batumi as well. “We always talk whenever I am on tour. This time also we had a chat and he did say some ‘special things’ which helped me a lot,” added the 19-year-old Nagpurian.
Living in a joint family, Divya is a darling of her grandmother who always wanted to see her granddaughter become a Grandmaster.
“My Aaji is very proud of me. She congratulated me at 2 am. I am very excited to meet her. She always wanted me to become a Grandmaster and I think this (title) is for her,” Divya proudly said. The toast of the nation, Divya admitted that the last 25 days in Batumi were very exhausting.
“The last 25 days were really exhausting. It has been a test of my stamina, resilience and my nerves. I think the reward is worth it as it was very exhausting.
Of the toughest opponents she faced, Divya said, “There were two opponents who were different in their own ways. Zhu was the first one because I had a bad score against her and she was really strong and that was an emotional battle for me because it was more to do with my belief in myself and trusting myself. After coming so far I didn’t want to go back empty-handed. So it was quite tough,” she recalled.
The Junior World Champion hopes that her victory will motivate young girls. “I think my title win will have a major impact on young girls. They will feel more motivated and they will feel that nothing is too hard to achieve. I hope that this win will increase the love for chess in Nagpur. There is a very less chess culture in Nagpur as compared to Chennai and I wish that my tribe grows all over Maharashtra.”
Divya also acknowledged the role Nagpur District Chess Association played in her career. “When I was a kid, NDCA used to organise a lot of rapid and blitz tournaments which really helped me a lot in my career.”
“I am super grateful to NDCA as they used to come and felicitate me whenever I used to win any title and that meant
a lot to me. I owe a lot to them,” Divya thanked the local chess body.
Divya is unstoppable and in her own words “this is just the beginning.”
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