Many novelties off the board at the Grand Slam Chess Final Masters in Bilbao that got underway on Tuesday could end up sparking off a revolution in chess.

Touted as the toughest-ever tournament in the history of chess with six of the top ten highest rated players in the world participating in a Double Round Robin format, the tournament with its new set of rules and an open stage has caught the imagination of the chess world.

In the fray are the winners of the Grand Slams, Levon Aronian (Corus Chess tournament), World Champion and World No 1 Viswanathan Anand (Morelia Linares Super tournament), Vassily Ivanchuk (MTel Masters) and Magnus Carlsen (tie for first place at Corus), and Veselin Topalov (second place at Mtel) and Teimour Radjabov, who had the next best results in these events.

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The prize fund is Euros 400,000.

Like in European football, a win will be awarded three points while a draw will fetch just one point, unlike the old system where the winner gained one point, while a draw meant just half a point.

The idea is to curb the shorter variety of draws popularly called ‘The Grandmaster Draws”, which are a part and parcel of high Category events, even though it is dull for the paying public.

Also for the first-time ever in an event of this magnitude, games will be played in an open street, right in the centre of Bilbao’s old town in a huge sound proof air-conditioned glass case which many refer to as the ‘aquarium”.

Chess Grandmasters Boris Spassky and Susan Polgar will be commentating and analysing the games for the audience near the aquarium. The spectators will be able to see the players in action at the closest range possible.

Thirty-eight-year-old Anand, a prolific tournament winner, starts as the favourite and all eyes will be on him as he is slated to play the World championship title match against Vladimir Kramnik in little more than a month’s time. The curiosity will centre around how far will Anand go in his quest for victory and how much of his preparation he will reveal?

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Anand, however, shrugged off the questions saying, “Bilbao is a very strong event and I will surely work separately for that. Playing with the best ones in the world in a tournament like this one is an appropriate way to keep fit.”

Anand was equally forthright when asked about the scoring system, “It is a novel idea and I am curious to see how it turns out. A win and a loss is more valuable than two draws.”

All the six players are the best talents in the chess world at the moment and it will be tough for any single player to dominate the event.

The other player to watch out for will be the in-form Ivanchuk, who is fresh from his double triumph in the Tal Memorial, where he won the event as well as the Blitz.

A talented player and Anand’s contemporary since their world junior days, Ivanchuk, who is touching forty, is probably at the peak of his career at the moment.

The 17-year-old wonder kid Magnus Carslen, who has risen to number two in world rankings, has, meanwhile, shown that his relative youth and inexperience will not prevent him from vying for top places in Grand slam events.

As for the other contenders, the 33-year-old Topalov is a former World champion and has displayed strong fighting spirit all through his career. His I-will-go-all-out for-victory attitude livens up tournaments and his attractive playing style captivates one and all.

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The 25-year-old Levon Aronian has won Grand Slam events and the World Cup, and his sparkling style is also well admired and liked.

Perhaps on current form, 21-year-old Teimour Radjabov will turn out to be the weakest one in the fray.

The players

Viswanathan Anand (Ind), Magnus Carlsen (Nor), Vassily Ivanchuk (Ukr), Veselin Topalov (Bul), Levon Aronian (Armenia)and Teimour Radjabov (Azb).