Daily News New York, New York Friday, October 08, 1971 - Page 18
Fischer & Foe Play to Draw In Third Game by Robert Byrne
Buenos Aires, Oct. 7 — Bobby Fischer and Tigran Petrosian fought the third game of their 12-game match to a draw before a capacity crowd in the Teatro General San Martin tonight. The winner will challenge Boris Spassky for the world chess championship.
Fischer's unusual 7th move virtually committed him to the speculative pawn's sacrifice, beginning at the 10th move.
This in turn led to the even riskier exchange sacrifice of the 12th move, which was declined, however, by the former world champion even though he might have been able to defend successfully after 13.— BxR; 14. QxB P-B3; 15. KN-B4 N-K4; 16. N-R5 P-B3; 17. QNxPch RxN; 18. QxN R-B2.
Couldn't Make Headway
Fischer was not able to make real headway with his king-side attack, but still managed to tie his opponent's pieces down to the defense of the weak king's bishop pawn, thus gaining time to control the queen's file. By giving up one of his two bishops at the 22nd move, Petrosian deflected one of the rooks and established one of his own on the queen's file.
Instead of the rook exchange at the 24th move, Fischer probably should have kept up the pressure by R-QN 1. But it was his faulty capture at the 25th move that got him into trouble. 25. NxP would have given him a slight advantage and avoided the difficulties he had to face from Petrosian's strong rook pawn.
Although his more solid pawn formation gave him a clear advantage, Petrosian could find no way to avoid the draw by repetition which Fischer claimed at move 34.
