"Like how Dhoni used to win matches in the last over"- Divya Deshmukh's former coach makes huge statement after her 2025 Chess World Cup win

Former coach of newly-crowned women's chess World Cup champion Divya Deshmukh has likened her ability to win pressure matches to MS Dhoni. He spoke about how the latter delivered in crunch moments in his heyday. Srinath Narayanan said that he has observed the 19-year-old raising her game when everything was on the line and performing exceptionally well in pressure situations.

Deshmukh defeated fellow Indian Koneru Humpy in a tie-break victory in the final in Batumi in Georgia, on Monday, July 28. Narayanan said to PTI (via News18),

“She’s quite an aggressive player. But with time, Divya has become more all-round, more versatile. I think she’s equally good across all the different formats… Classical, Rapid and Blitz. And her strength is, I think, turning up in those big moments, crunch situations. Like how Mahendra Singh Dhoni used to win the matches in the last over."

“I saw something similar in Divya in those last-round situations or situations where everything was hanging in the high-pressure moments. She used to perform incredibly well under pressure in important matches,"

Deshmukh's victory came after the two classical games on Saturday and Sunday played out in a draw. The Nagpur native won 1.5–0.5 on Monday to seal her maiden World Cup triumph and become only the third winner, overall, of the prestigious event.

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MS Dhoni carved out a reputation to win games under pressure during his career

MS Dhoni made his international debut in 2004. In his initial years, he developed a reputation for clearing the ropes with ease in most grounds around the world with brute force. However, once he took over as the limited-overs captain in 2007, he altered his game to become a calculated finisher while chasing down scores.

Dhoni showed a penchant to take the game deep and turn the contest into a batter versus bowler shootout, and then produced the goods in high-stakes situations. He retired from international cricket in August 2020, but continues to represent Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the IPL.