On her debut at Norway Chess on Monday, Divya Deshmukh, the 20-year-old Nagpur native, beat the women's world chess champion Ju Wenjun to a draw in the classical game of Armageddon.
Divya became the first player to enter one of the event's most interesting features, which is the confessional booth. It is a soundproof room which allows players to share their candid thoughts directly on the live camera, stepping away from the board.
Talking to Times of India via reporters, Divya whispered at the first round of the game doubtfully, "I don't know if I am supposed to do this while sitting or standing, but my game is very interesting. I really hope that she can't hear me," she whispered during her Round 1 classical game.
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She also added, "I saw there are some people who are sleeping in the first row. But honestly, I don't blame them. It is what I would've done too."
"I'm actually getting a bit hungry, and there's a packet of dried mango kept on the table, but I'm unsure if we can eat it, because it might be for promotional purposes. I want to find that out, but I have no idea how! Right now, I'm just waiting for her to make a move," the Indian Grandmaster shared after her thoughts turned towards the snacks kept aside the playing table.
Arshdeep Singh vs PBKS fallout looks real! 😳
— Cricket Central (@CricketCentrl) May 26, 2026
The left-arm seamer has completely purged his Instagram account over the last 24 hours:
- Removed PBKS from his bio ❌
- Changed his profile picture 🖼️
- Deleted 234+ posts
- 📉Wiped out all Punjab Kings-related content pic.twitter.com/QuFEqAlG27
On the board, the game followed a Réti/Catalan structure. Playing with the black pieces, Divya defended herself calmly and tactically against the aggressive attack of Ju Wenjun, bringing a draw in their classical encounter.
The draw was followed to guarantee a winner after the tiebreak. In this format, Divya handles the pressure perfectly to take the extra points by taking less than seven minutes and a draw to win the match.
Gukesh and Praggnanandhaa set with a solid start in Armageddon
In the Armageddon matches, Gukesh and Praggnanandhaa make their move in the tournament with a solid victory. Gukesh's classical match against Vincent Keymer bore a victory for him after a tiebreak. In a tough position during the endgame, Gukesh made an incorrect move, which handed Keymer two extra minutes on the clock under tournament rules. However, Keymer failed to secure victory in the remaining time, sealing the match with a brilliant win in the Armageddon for Gukesh.
On the other hand, Praggnanandhaa also secured a solid win against the American Grandmaster Wesley So in the Armageddon tiebreak to secure 1.5 points.
Carlsen faces a shocking defeat, while Koneru Humpy makes a blunder
In the women's championship, India's Koneru Humpy faced a defeat after committing a blunder at the end against Bibisara Assaubayeva.
Meanwhile, Zhu Jiner made her first-ever appearance, winning her match against defending champion Anna Muzychuk in the Armageddon.
On opening day, the world no. 1, Magnus Carlsen, faces a shocking defeat in a classical game to Alireza Firouzja.
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Talking to Times of India via reporters, Carlsen admitted, "He gave me a lot of tests, and in the end I failed... He doesn’t necessarily always find the best move, but he put me under a ton of pressure, and that’s kind of what you want to do!"
The Norway Chess Championship started with many ups and downs, while the Indian debutants outsmarted their game towards victory, securing positive points in the tournament.
