In his decade-long chess career, 18-year-old Nubairshah Shaikh has faced several grand masters from across the world. But, earlier this month, when the Thane lad faced opponent Melkumyan Hrant, the Armenian chess wizard at Abu Dhabi, he knew he had met his match. "He's a great player, and was initially leading the game, but then we managed to equalise. It went on for a good six hours," he says.