Lei Wins Again To Reach World No. 2; Tan, Humpy Also Through
GM Lei Tingjie continues her impressive run in the 2025 FIDE Women's World Cup, scoring another clean 2-0 victory, this time with a rather convincing victory against GM Nana Dzagnidze, to climb to women's world number-two in the live ratings.
Joining her in the Semifinals are GM Koneru Humpy, who overcame a slight scare from rising star IM Song Yuxin, and GM Tan Zhongyi, who squeezed out a win from a dramatic 88-move battle against GM Vaishali Rameshbabu.
The fourth and final semifinal spot will go to either IM Divya Deshmukh or GM Harika Dronavalli, as the Indian duo made their second consecutive draw on Sunday. They will have a tense playoff on Monday.
- Humpy Through Despite Scare
- Lei Cruises Into Semifinals, Climbs To World No. 2
- Harika, Divya Make Second Draw
- Tan Wins Dramatic Duel Against Vaishali
Tiebreaks take place on Monday, July 21, starting at 7 a.m. ET / 13:00 CEST / 4:30 p.m. IST.
Women's World Cup Quarterfinal Results
| Fed | Player | Rtg | - | Fed | Player | Rating | G1 | G2 | TB |
| GM Nana Dzagnidze | 2505 | - | GM LEI TINGJIE | 2552 | 0-1 | 0-1 | |||
| GM KONERU HUMPY | 2543 | - | IM Song Yuxin | 2410 | 1-0 | ½-½ | |||
| GM Vaishali Rameshbabu | 2481 | - | GM TAN ZHONGYI | 2546 | ½-½ | 0-1 | |||
| IM Divya Deshmukh | 2463 | - | GM Harika Dronavalli | 2483 | ½-½ | ½-½ | . |
Humpy Through Despite Scare
Humpy was the first to book her place in the Semifinals, but it wasn't without drama. 19-year-old Song, who had knocked out former women's world number-two GM Anna Muzychuk in the third round, caught her more experienced opponent off-guard and gained a two-pawn advantage.
Her pawn structure was far from ideal, though, with both doubled pawns and tripled pawns, an unusual sight.
They're not the best-looking extra pawns ever, but Song has some hopes of getting the win she needs to force tiebreaks! https://t.co/huVygKpB01 pic.twitter.com/OVUQFcbMTM
— chess24 (@chess24com) July 20, 2025
The young Chinese player remained better for some more time until her more experienced opponent used her rook activity on the d-file to gradually equalize, and even missed an opportunity to play for the full point when she gained a passed pawn.
The resulting rook endgame was never more than a draw, and the point was shared when the position was repeated for the third time on move 53.
Afterward, Humpy wasn't satisfied with her own play, saying:
It feels happy to qualify without playing tiebreaks, but I felt today I could've played much better. I was in a much better position, but slipped out in the time trouble.
The 38-year-old grandmaster will face Lei in a semifinal on Tuesday, a match she admitted will be a tough one.
Lei Cruises Into Semifinals, Climbs To World No. 2
Lei delivered another great performance in Batumi to defeat Dzagnidze 2-0. She is now the only player not needing to go through a playoff. With her impressive 7.5/8, she has gained 15 rating points so far.
The win on Sunday also means that she has overtaken World Champion GM Ju Wenjun as the second-highest rated female player in the world.
Dzagnidze faced the difficult task of being in a must-win situation with the black pieces, and the opening was not a success for her. Lei achieved a comfortable position, as she also noted in her post-game interview with IM Michael Rahal.
I think I generally played well. I don't know because the position looks quite strange. I put a lot of pieces back, but it looks like I developed quite well with White.
The Georgian grandmaster deserves credit for trying, though, such as when she lashed out with the classic 16...g5!?
However, instead of following up with g5-g4 later on, her position ended up being too cramped with no counterattack on the queenside. Instead, White had all the pressure with doubled rooks on the c-file. When Black played 35...Bd6?, it allowed 36.Ne5! and White's position was clearly winning.
While the match win never really seemed in danger for Lei, she allowed Dzagnidze to come back into the game with 48.Bf8? which was met with 48...d3!, a move she admitted that she had missed as she ignored the option of going for an immediate draw by perpetual check with 51.Qxd7.
But Dzagnidze could not find 53...Nc5!, which was the only way to stay in the game, and the resulting endgame was hopelessly lost.
Asked about facing Humpy in the Semifinals, Lei said: "We've played a lot, and generally we know each other. I will do my best," she said, adding: "At least I have qualified for the semifinal. I don't need to change my ticket!"
At least I have qualified for the semifinal. I don't need to change my ticket!
—Lei Tingjie
Harika, Divya Make Second Draw
Harika and Divya remain the only ones without a decisive game. Sunday's game was considerably longer than their 31-move draw in the first game. Harika did not achieve much with the white pieces in the opening, and gradually the 2024 World Girls Junior Champion gained some initiative in the endgame with hopes to play for a win thanks to her passed c-pawn.
The game never really seemed to leave draw territory, and the draw was inevitable.
They now have to go through grueling rapid tiebreaks, with two games of 15+10 before the time control is reduced to 10+10, 5+3, and eventually 3+2 if still tied.
Tan Wins Dramatic Duel Against Vaishali
Tan has reached her third semifinal in three attempts in the Women's World Cup, but did not advance in the earlier two events. In 2021 she was knocked out by GM Alexandra Kosteniuk, while GM Aleksandra Goryachkina eliminated her in 2023.
It turned out to be quite a dramatic game that seemed to be heading toward a draw when Vaishali was able to recover from a difficult position. That's our Game of The Day that has been analyzed by GM Rafael Leitao below.
"It feels really tough. Even though it's my third time, reaching the [semi]final, it wasn't easy. It was a very hard-fought battle," she said afterward, later describing her close relationship with Lei in the following interview.
There's a lot at stake in the all-Indian playoff. Three of the four players are guaranteed spots in the 2026 Women's Candidates Tournament, the event that decides the challenger to Ju's throne.
The 2025 FIDE Women's World Cup takes place at the Grand Bellagio Hotel & Casino in Batumi, Georgia. It is a 107-player tournament with a single-elimination knockout format and a classical time control of 90 minutes for the first 40 moves and 30 minutes for the rest of the game, plus a 30-second increment per move from the first move. Each round consists of two games at the classical time control, followed by a tiebreak in faster time controls in case the scores are tied.
Previous coverage:
- Quarterfinals Game 1: Dream Day For India As All 4 Players Clinch Quarterfinal Spots
- Round 4 Game 2: Zhu Strikes Back As Lei, Tan, Song, Dzagnidze Reach Quarterfinals
- Round 4 Game 1: Divya Stuns Zhu As Other Chinese Stars Win
- Round 3 Tiebreaks: 19-year-old Song Yuxin Knocks Out 5th Seed Anna Muzychuk
- Round 3 Game 2: Gunina, Lagno Strike Back To Force Tiebreaks
- Round 3 Game 1: Vantika Stuns Lagno As Women's World Cup Round 3 Begins
- Round 2 Tiebreaks: Kamalidenova Gives Defending Champion Goryachkina Early Exit
- Round 2 Game 2: 14-Year-Old Kaliakhmet Eliminates GM Batsiashvili
- Round 2 Game 1: Kazakh 19-Year-Old Kamalidenova Upsets Goryachkina, 2023 Winner
- Round 1 Tiebreaks: Dark Horse Priyanka Eliminates Hungary's No. 1
- Round 1 Game 2: 11 Matches Go To Tiebreaks
- Round 1 Game 1: Jumpy Start For Favorites At FIDE Women's World Cup
