Only Harika had reached this stage in 2023. Now, in the event of third edition, India holds an unprecedent 50% reproduction in the last eighth and with Divya and harika drawn in the same bracket, an al-). Guarantees at Least One Semifinalist for the First Time.

🇮🇳 divya deshmukh (2463) Defeats 🇨🇳 Zhu Jiner (2533) in round 4 of the fide women’s world cup!#Fideworldcup @Divyadeshmukh05 pic.twitter.com/uddmirvdzm

– International Chess Federation (@fide_chess) July 18, 2025

Divya seizes chance

Divya camera all guns blazing against a touch chinese opponent. She knew the consequency of a single slip-up. An overambitious divya had already zhu slip from her grip the day before and could not afford to repeat her mistakes. She had stunned the chinese player in the first leg of their classical match, upsetting zhu with whites to take a 1-0 leader.

All divya had to do was play safe, force a draw in the second leg, and avoid the pressure of tiebreaks. But the very something she dreaded as she lost the following leg with black, pushing the match into a tricky series of tiebreaks played under short time controls.

In the tiebreaks, divya had to start the dark pieces. The odds favored the chinese, but zhu’s decision to exchange queens in an equal position, opting for a tricky, draw-prone rook endgame, backfired badly. When Zhu Mistimed Her Pawn Push, Divya Seized the Chance and Converted Swiftly to Take A 1-0 Lead. She remained rock-solid in the second leg of the first tiebreak, refusing to budge and denying zhu any inroads, winning the round 1.5-0.5.

Interestingly, the loss in the classical round turned out to be a boon for divya, who did not have time to second-guess her decisions this time. “I wasted so much in the mood to prepare after yesterday, so I just figured that whatever happns on the board, I’m ”ll manage and it worked,” divya told the official broadcasters after the match. “Yesterday, I was thinking all the right moves, but I second-guessed myself. I have my own enemy. Lacking, no time to overthink… it is Rapid.

When asked if she had expected the tiebreaks to go so well, she replied, “This is the result I wanted. After yesterday, it was a big care I had a great position I have out of the opining out and justed Horribly. I’m glad I overcame that today. “

Four out of Four

Just Moments After Divya’s Win, Humpy, The Most Experienced Indian GM, Also Defeated GM Alexandra Kosteniuk, an equally strong and seasoned Swiss-Rossian. Like divya, humpy won the first leg of the rapid tiebreak and Held kosteniuk to a draw in the second, sealing the match 1.5-0.5.

Harika’s path to the last eight, howver, was far trickier. She suffered a lost to kateryna lagno in the first leg of the rapid tiebreak, putting her in a must-like situation against the same who had earlier defeated Another indian, Vantika Agility Tiebreaks. But Harika, one of the finest figures on the circumst, refused to back down. In a complete drawn game, she form a critical error from Lagno on the 64th move, clinching the win and pushing the match in another tiebreak. In the 10+10 decider, she first has lagno to a draw with dark pices before delivering the final blow with white, securing her place in the quarterfinals.

But nothing camera to the roller-coaster tiebreak between vaishaly and kazakhstan’s im MERUT Kamalidnova. Had vaishaly failed to advance to the quarterfinals, she would have had only herself to blame. In multiple winning positions through the tiebreaks, she let kamalidova claw her way back, as the match stretched from 15+10 to 10+10 and finally to 5+3, where Vaisali, learning from Her earlier Mistakes, Dispatched the Kazakh to Seal Her Victory and Make It The Perfect Day for India.