AThe Province Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada Wednesday, May 19, 1971 - Page 32
Fischer Confident of Victory
Bobby Fischer of the United States and Soviet grandmaster Mark Taimanov adjourned the second game in their world championship elimination match here Tuesday night after the five-hour time limit elapsed.
Adjournment came on the 44th move with Fischer holding an edge in board strength with a bishop over a knight.
The 28-year-old Brooklyn, N.Y., native confidently predicted after the game that he would win. If Taimanov, 46, does not concede the game beforehand, play will resume this afternoon.
Taimanov resigned in the first game, played at the University of B.C. Sunday, before it could be resumed Sunday, giving Fischer a one-point lead in the scheduled 10-round quarter-final match.
The competition ends whenever a player reaches 5½ points. It is being held to decide who will meet world champion Boris Spassky of the U.S.S.R. in Moscow next year.
In an independent version of the Sicilian Defense, Taimanov proved a much stronger opponent Tuesday than he was in the first game. Known as a strong end-game player, he was in a good position to force a draw until the late stages of the game when he failed to capitalize on an opening to attack white, choosing instead to withdraw into a defensive shell.
A shortage of time may have been responsible for Taimanov's oversight. He used up 45 minutes of his 2½ hours to make his 13th move. A player must complete 40 moves in that time or forfeit the round.
On Fischer's request, spectators are not being allowed to follow the game with their own chess sets any longer. The American said his game was disrupted Sunday when a viewer accidentally tipped a set over.
