'Greatest female chess player of all time' Judit Polgar hails Divya Deshmukh, Indian chess after Women's World Cup history

The legendary Judit Polgar, considered the greatest female chess player of all time, hailed Indian chess and Divya Deshmukh after the 19-year-old clinched the FIDE Women’s World Cup 2025 title, beating compatriot Koneru Humpy on Monday in Batumi, Georgia.

It was a historic result as Divya became the first Indian to win the Women’s Chess World Cup trophy and also earned the Grandmaster title as a result of winning the mega event. The teenager from Nagpur is India’s fourth woman chess player to earn the title of a Grandmaster.

Also Read | Divya fights back tears, shares emotional hug with mother after FIDE Women's World Cup win

Praising Divya for a thrilling win over the reigning Women’s World Rapid Chess Champion Humpy, Polgar, the only woman chess player to be ranked in the world top 10 and achieve a rating of over 2700, praised Divya, the Indian chess prodigy, and also pointed out how Indian chess continues to grow leaps and bounds.

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Polgar, Nakamura praise Divya on social media

“Congrats to @DivyaDeshmukh05, who has clinched the 2025 Women’s Chess World Cup title, defeating her compatriot Koneru Humpy in a tense tiebreak. Indian chess is just unbelievable! But do not forget: it has reasons,” Polgar wrote on X.

Congrats to @DivyaDeshmukh05 🇮🇳, who has clinched the 2025 Women’s Chess World Cup title, defeating her compatriot Koneru Humpy in a tense tiebreak.
Indian chess is just unbelievable!
But do not forget: it has reasons.😉#ChessConnectsUs #India
📷 FIDE / Anna Shtourman &… pic.twitter.com/eebNVB2sLA

— Judit Polgar (@GMJuditPolgar) July 28, 2025

World No.2 Hikaru Nakamura of the United States also mentioned the rapid growth of Indian chess while celebrating Divya’s historic victory.

“Huge congrats to @DivyaDeshmukh05 for both winning the Women’s World Cup but also going from no-norms to the GM title in one big jump!! Indian chess is knocking it out of the park these days,” he wrote on X.

Huge congrats to @DivyaDeshmukh05 for both winning the Women's World Cup but also going from no-norms to the GM title in one big jump!! Indian chess is knocking it out of the park these days. #FIDEWorldCup #FIDEWomenWorldCup #ChessWorldCup #IndianChess pic.twitter.com/HnIUeouIUa

— Hikaru Nakamura (@GMHikaru) July 28, 2025

Divya reflects on becoming Grandmaster

“I think it was fate, me getting the grandmaster title this way. Before the tournament, I didn’t even have one norm. I was thinking that I could maybe earn a grandmaster norm here. And at the end, I became a grandmaster,” Divya said after the match, reflecting on becoming a Grandmaster at 19.

“This means a lot, but there’s a lot more to achieve. I’m hoping this is just the start.”

Also Read |  How Divya outfoxed Humpy, scripted history by winning FIDE Women’s Chess World Cup

As a result of winning the Chess World Cup, Divya took home a prize money of $50,000 (Rs 41.6 lakh), while Humpy was awarded $35,000 (Rs 29.1 lakh).