BENGALURU: The 2025 Women's Chess World Cup winner Divya Deshmukh will make her debut in the Global Chess League with defending champions Alpine Pipers when the fourth season begins in Bengaluru on September 5.
The 20-year-old Indian chess star, recently named an Arjuna Award recipient, will join a formidable Pipers line-up featuring world No. 1 Magnus Carlsen, Anish Giri, Vidit Gujrathi and Volodar Murzin.
Having largely competed in individual tournaments, Deshmukh is looking forward to the challenge of rapid chess in the league’s franchise-based team format and the opportunity to play in front of a home crowd.
“It’s my debut, so I’m definitely very excited. It’s not like any other chess tournament. There’s going to be a lot of audience for this one, which is going to be really nice. And also, the format is quite different to classical events, so it’s fun. Playing in India is always fun,” Deshmukh was quoted as saying in a release.
While the opportunity to play alongside Carlsen has heightened anticipation for her debut, Deshmukh said the squad's overall strength was equally exciting.
“I guess it’s always great to have a teammate that is considered one of the best in the world. But for me, it’s also not just Magnus on my team. There are so many great players overall. There’s Anish, there’s Vidit, and there’s also Murzin. So, it’s not just about one person. It’s about the whole team,” she added.
Deshmukh said she would first seek to understand the format's demands before assessing what she could take away from the experience.
“If I can take lessons from it, we will only find out after the event. I can’t say anything now. But yeah, I’m very excited to play this format, ” she said.
The tournament will also mark her first proper visit to Bengaluru. “I’ve only been to Bengaluru airport. This is the first time in the city,” Deshmukh said.
Season 4 will feature 36 leading players representing six global franchises in the league’s mixed-team format. The Tech Mahindra Global Chess League Season 4 will be held at The Lalit Ashok in Bengaluru from September 5 to 13.
--IANS
