‘Quite stressful…’ Divya on gruelling WC campaign

“It was quite stressful. Quite difficult because it’s such a long event.”

IMAGE: Divya Deshmukh with Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis during a felicitation ceremony in Nagpur on Saturday. Photograph: Kind Courtesy CMO Maharashtra/X

Grandmaster Divya Deshmukh has revealed that navigating the pressure in a long, gruelling tournament like the FIDE Women’s World Cup title was “quite stressful” but she was determined to go all the way after the tough matches in the lead-up to the title clash against Koneru Humpy.

Divya, 19, overcame Humpy in the tie-breaker after two nerve-wracking classical games ended in draws to become the first Indian woman to win the prestigious title and become a Grandmaster in Batumi, Georgia, recently.

“It was quite stressful. Quite difficult because it’s such a long event. You have to keep up your stamina. You have to be resistant and you have to show up on the board every single day to give your best. Thankfully, I was never in a situation where I had to be in a must-win (situation). So, I don’t know how I would have coped with that,” said Divya in an interaction posted by FIDE on social media.

The Nagpur player added that though she was nervous going into the final, she wanted to give it her best shot after coming this far.

“I think from an emotional perspective, maybe, but the finals was incredibly difficult. The pressure, the nerves, the toll that the entire tournament was taking and the feeling like you’ve come so far and now you cannot go back down… so I would say it was quite difficult.

“I think there was always some part of me that would never give up. I always wanted to fight, but after I lost the second match I was quite disappointed mainly because I was in a good position at the opening..

Beating a tough opponent like GM Dronavalli Harika in the quarterfinals spurred Divya on and helped her go all the way to the final. The match went into a tiebreak after two classical games ended in draws. Divya won both tiebreak games to advance to the semifinals.

“Harika was definitely quite strong, but I think because I had gone through (some tough games) already… by the time I got to Harika, I was already quite sure.

Divya said she was taking it one game at a time and only started entertaining thoughts of winning the title after she had reached the final.

“At least, I never had the thoughts of winning the tournament until I was in the finals. I knew that of course there’s some part of you that always, you know, wants (to be) the best, but I was just trying to survive.

Divya then beat Tan Zhongyi of China in the semifinals, one of the strongest players in the world.

“She was a very strong player. Very strong. That was a close match. (As for Humpy), I think she’s definitely quite strong, but honestly in this tournament the nerves…you know you have to be calm throughout the entire tournament.”

On whether achieving the GM title was bigger than winning the tournament, she said, “I think Grandmaster title is something that would have eventually come. I don’t know when but it would have. So can’t choose. I think the fact that both of them happen at the same time makes it all the more special.

“I think maybe maybe it was destiny that I got my title in one shot and the fact that I did not have even one (GM) norm before it and now I’m a Grandmaster. That’s why I think that maybe it was meant to be.”.

On what her mother told her following the emotional hug after winning the title, Divya said, “She told me to have confidence in myself and to manage my time. I think motivation is not a constant factor. I think sometimes there is, sometimes there isn’t, but you just have to push through it.

“At least that’s what I’ve been doing. And, what I believe in is that all I can do is give my best and I don’t control the results. So, that’s what I’ve been focusing on,” she added.