IT WILL be no holds barred when four Grandmasters of world lock horns from June One for the Maharashtra Challenge Match at Naivedhyam Northstar, Koradi. But on the eve of the one of its kind competition, all four Grandmasters — Russian Peter Svidler, Briton Nigel Short and India’s Vidit Gujrathi and local boy Raunak Sadhwani looked at ease and were in a jovial mood.

“India has a tradition of respecting elders and I hope Raunak will respect me when we sit across the table,” Short, who once taught the nuances of chess to Sadhwani, said amid laughter in the Patrakar Club of Nagpur hall on Wednesday evening. Sadhwani admitted that he has not played across the board classical chess for quite some time but has prepared well for his ‘mentor’. Svidler, too, is hoping for some ‘courtesy’ from his opponent India No 3 Gujrathi but at the same time expects some tough fight from the Indian. Gujrathi, on his part, lauded experienced 46-years-old Svidler and his achievements but said he will “forget all his achievements when the first pawn is moved on the morrow.”

Maharashrta Governor Ramesh Bais, DCM Devndra Fadnavis, Maharashtra Sports Minister Girish Mahajan, Chandrashekhar Bawankule and Sunil Kedar will inaugurate the tournament at 2.30 pm. “Apart from Maharashtra Challenge, three more competitions — 2nd Maharashtra International Chess Open Grandmaster Chess Tournament, Below 2000 and Below 1600 — will also be played,” informed Dr Parinay Fuke, President, Maharashtra Chess Association, the organiser of the meet.

For the GM tournament, which will be of 11 rounds, Russian Boris Savchenko (2529) has been seeded top while Viacheslav Zakhartsov, also a Russian, is seeded second. The tournament carries a total prize money of Rs 66 lakh. MCA Secretary Niranjan Godbole, GM Abhijit Kunte, Bhushan Shriwas, Nishant Gandhi and others were also present on the occasion.