Koneru Humpy Makes History by Becoming First Indian Female Grandmaster to Qualify For Women's Chess World Cup Semis

India's female chess grandmasters were competing to bring more laurels to the nation in the FIDE Women's Chess World Cup 2025, and it is Koneru Humpy who scripted history when she became the first Indian to make it to the semi-finals of one of the most prestigious chess tournaments on the calendar. 

Humpy scripted Indian chess history when she beat China's Song Yuxin in the quarterfinals - no Indian before her had managed to make it to the final four of the tournament before this year's edition. 

It is a massive feat and Humpy will hope she can continue this form and potentially make it to the final and compete for the title. 

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How Humpy Sealed Win

The key to Humpy's win came at due to her being able to win the first of two games that are normally played, in which she was playing with the white pieces. 

Once she got the win with whites, she was able to defend well and secure a draw in the 2nd game which confirmed her spot in the semi-finals. 

Yuxin did try her level best to get Humpy to make an error but the Indian grandmaster played it safe and did not make any major mistakes, thus sealing her place in the final four. 

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Indian Chess Guaranteed Candidates Representation

The good news if you are an Indian chess fan is that India is guaranteed at least one spot in the 2025 Candidates given the nature of other results in the quarters. 

With Humpy already through, she is set to be joined by one more Indian chess player as Divya Deshmukh and D Harika are up against one another in the quarters. 

Whoever wins their tie will also be through to the semis and that spells excellent news for India as a whole. 

The reason? The top 3 finishers in the World Cup move forward to the Candidates, and with two Indians in the fray, it is likely that at least one Indian will make it to the tournament. 

In a best case scenario, two Indians could be in the reckoning for a spot too.