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FIDE Women’s World Cup Day 3: Young Stars Shine and Big Upsets
Day 3 of the 2025 FIDE Women’s World Cup in Batumi, Georgia, brought excitement, surprises, and rising stars making headlines.
Tomorrow, the tournament gets even bigger as the twenty-one top seeds join the competition.
Tiebreak Drama: Rapid, Blitz, and Big Nerves
Today, eleven matches that ended in draws after the first two classical games went into tense tiebreaks.
Players first played two rapid games (15 minutes + 10 seconds increment). If still tied, they played two faster rapid games (10 minutes + 10 seconds). If needed, they finished with two blitz games (5 minutes + 3 seconds).
Just like in 2021 and 2023, the higher-rated players often showed better intuition and quick thinking under pressure.
In fact, in eight out of eleven matches, the favorites needed only the first two rapid games to win and move to round two.
Confident Wins and Surprise Challenges
Poland’s IM Klaudia Kulon advanced with a clean 2-0 tiebreak win over Mexico’s WIM Miranda Rodriguez Tania. Despite expecting an easier match, her trainer warned her to be careful. Klaudia shared her thoughts in the media room, happy with her performance.
Iran’s WGM Mobina Alinasab also won 2-0, defeating Kazakhstan’s WIM Amina Kairbekova. Interestingly, it was Mobina’s first-ever tiebreak in four World Cups!
Local rising star WFM Anastasia Kirtadze, born in 2009, impressed everyone too. She defeated Spain’s experienced IM Ann Matnadze Bujiashvili with a sharp tactic, finishing the match 2-0.
She happily said, “Ann is a really strong player. I hope I win the next games too!”
Other players who advanced included Canada’s WGM Maili-Jade Ouellet, USA’s WGM Thalia Cervantes Landeiro, Ukraine’s IM Inna Gaponenko, and Greece’s FM Anastasia Avramidou.
Big Upset of the Day
The most surprising result was when Uzbekistan’s WIM Umida Omonova, only 19 years old, eliminated France’s experienced IM Sophie Milliet in a long fight, 3.5-2.5.
Umida, who is already a strong player in rapid and blitz, shared:
“Today, I played very well and won in the tiebreak. Although my opponent was very strong, we prepared well. I want to thank everyone — especially my coaches and my parents.”
Umida has already helped Uzbekistan win medals at the Women’s Chess Olympiad and Asian Games.
Blitz Battles: Last-Minute Thrillers
Two matches went all the way to the blitz games.
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India’s WIM Priyanka K (rated 2090) eliminated Hungary’s rising star WGM Zsoka Gaal in a dramatic 5-3 win.
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Iran’s WIM Anahita Zahedifar defeated Azerbaijan’s top woman player WGM Govhar Beydullayeva 4.5-3.5 in an extremely close finish.
Round Two: Matches to Watch
The second round will be even more intense, as top players enter the event.
Here are some exciting matches to follow:
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All-American clash: GM Irina Krush vs IM Carissa Yip
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Young stars: IM Alice Lee (15) vs WGM Anna Shukhman (16)
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Indian battle: GM Harika Dronavalli vs WGM Nandhidhaa P V
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Experienced GMs: Antoaneta Stefanova vs Elina Danielian
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GM Bella Khotenashvili vs IM Nurgyul Salimova
The full list of tiebreak results and pairings is available on the official Women’s World Cup website.
About the Tournament
The 2025 FIDE Women’s World Cup runs from July 6th to July 28th in Batumi, Georgia.It features 107 players from 46 countries, including 17 of the world’s current top 20.Players compete for a $50,000 first prize and three spots in the Candidates Tournament.
Stay tuned for daily updates, surprises, and brilliant games!
Photos: Anna Shtourman, FIDE_chess
Source: FIDE CHESS NEWS
