Batumi, Georgia – Grandmaster Koneru Humpy created a historic moment for Indian chess on Sunday, July 20, 2025, by becoming the first-ever Indian woman to reach the semifinals of the FIDE Women’s World Cup. Her achievement in Batumi, Georgia, assures India of at least one spot in the coveted FIDE Women’s Candidates Tournament in 2026.
Humpy’s Decisive Quarterfinal Victory
India’s top-ranked woman player, Koneru Humpy, secured her semifinal berth by drawing her second classical game against China’s Yuxin Song while playing with black pieces. This draw, following her victory in the first game, gave her a convincing 1.5-0.5 scoreline in the quarterfinal contest. This surpasses the previous best performance by an Indian woman, which was Harika Dronavalli’s run to the quarterfinals in the 2023 edition.
In her match against Song, Humpy adeptly navigated Song’s preferred Jobava’s London opening, equalizing without much trouble. Despite sacrificing two pawns to offer white some hope, Humpy capitalized on Song’s broken pawn structure (three pawns on a sole file) to find counter-play in the center. She successfully recovered the pawns and steered the game into a level rook-and-pawns endgame, securing the draw after 53 moves.
Other Indian Campaigns and Semifinal Matchups
While Humpy celebrated her historic progression, the quarterfinal round presented mixed results for the other Indian contenders:
- R. Vaishali’s Exit: R. Vaishali, playing with black pieces, lost her second classical game to China’s Tan Zhongyi, resulting in her elimination from the tournament.1 Tan won their contest with a 1.5-0.5 score.
- All-Indian Tiebreak: The highly anticipated all-Indian last-eight clash between Harika Dronavalli and Divya Deshmukh will be decided via tiebreaks. Their second classical game also ended in a draw, just as their first had. The winner of this intense showdown will advance to face Tan Zhongyi in the semifinals. The tiebreaks are scheduled to be played on Monday, July 21, from 4:35 PM IST.
Koneru Humpy’s next challenge in the semifinals will be against top-seeded Chinese Grandmaster Lei Tingjie, who convincingly defeated local hope Nana Dzagnidze 2-0 in her quarterfinal match.2
Road to the Candidates Tournament
The FIDE Women’s World Cup is not just about the prestigious title; it also offers three crucial spots to the FIDE Women’s Candidates Tournament, set to take place in the first half of 2026.3 With Koneru Humpy already in the semifinals, and one more Indian assured a spot in the last four from the Harika-Divya tiebreak, India is guaranteed at least one coveted berth in the Candidates Tournament, marking a significant milestone for Indian chess on the global stage.
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