India's Gukesh triumphs at World Chess Armageddon Asia & Oceania event

Gukesh lost the following game versus Abdusattorov due to a missed opportunity in game 1, preventing him from using his "extra life" to restart the match. His continuous check resulted in a draw in the opening game of the "new" match. He won the following match to become the champion.

Gukesh and Abdusattorov will both compete in the Grand Finale of Armageddon in September. Apart from Abdusattorov, the 16-year-old Indian triumphed against previous world champion in the classical division Vladimir Kramnik, Daniil Dubov, Yangyi Yu (China), Vidit Gujrathi, Karthikeyan Murali, and Param Maghsoodloo (Iran).

“Glad to win the thrilling event Armageddon championship series 2023-Asia and Oceania group by @theworldchess! Big relief to finally win a faster time control elite event & enjoyed plenty of new experiences the way the event was played amidst lights, makeup stuff,” Gukesh tweeted after the triumph.

Viswanathan Anand, a former world champion, praised the youthful GM's accomplishment. “Congratulations @DGukesh. An excellent achievement especially in a different time control. Proud to see our @WacaChess mentee make us proud again,” Anand tweeted.

Every day of the competition, two blitz games and, if required, an Armageddon game were played. (five minutes for White, four for Black). Blitz chess's Armageddon variation is used to decide the winner after a string of tied games. In Armageddon, a game that is drawn counts as a victory for Black.