In a historic and remarkable display of skill, India's men's and women's chess teams have clinched two silver medals at the Asian Games in Hangzhou, China.
This accomplishment marked an important moment in the country's sporting history, as it helped India cross the magical 100-medal mark for the first time at the Asian Games.
A closer look at the results
On the ninth and final day of the chess events at the Asian Games, India's women's chess team ended their campaign with a perfect 4-0 victory against South Korea, in the ninth and final round, securing the silver medal. This performance saw them finish second overall out of twelve competing teams.
The women's team accumulated a final score of 15 points after all their matches, narrowly trailing behind China, who secured the gold medal with 17 points. The Indian women's chess team included R. Vaishali, Vantika Agarwal, Savitha Shri, Harika Chandra, and Koneru Humpy.
The entire contingent played fabulous chess throughout the tournament, and this resulted in victories over Mongolia, Indonesia, Vietnam, the Philippines, Hong Kong, Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan, which helped them procure the silver medal.
The men's chess team also contributed to India's impressive medal haul, securing a silver medal of their own. They ended their campaign with a final score of 15 points. However, they just fell short of being able to grab that gold medal that went to Iran, who scored one point more than their Indian counterparts.
The men’s chess team was made up of Gukesh, Vidit Gujrathi, Praggnanandhaa, Arjun Erigaisi and Harikrishna Pentala. All five of the players played a big role in the team’s success throughout the tournament. They showed their strengths and secured wins against Mongolia, Kyrgyzstan, South Korea, Kazakhstan and Vietnam.
After the chess victories, India have now won 107 medals, including 28 gold medals and 38 silver medals, at the 19th edition of the Asian Games in Hangzhou, making this the country’s best performance at the prestigious continental event.