The Spokesman-Review Spokane, Washington Thursday, October 28, 1971 - Page 19
Fischer Plays For Title: No American This Close
Buenos Aires (AP) — American Chess ace Bobby Fischer, who defeated Tigran Petrosian to gain a shot at a world championship match against Russian Boris Spassky, is the first American ever to have a chance for the championship.
Fischer downed the Soviet grandmaster 6½ to 2½, winning the ninth and final game in their scheduled 12-game match Tuesday night.
Fischer won five of the games played, lost one and drew three. He won the last four in succession.
For anyone else in the world this would rank as a major success. For Fischer it does not compare with his previous two matches in the series to determine a challenger for the world title.
Two Shutouts!
Fischer defeated Mark Taimanov of the Soviet Union and Bent Larsen of Denmark, each considered among the foremost practitioners of the game, by 6-0 scores, a feat completely unprecedented in the long history of chess.
What remains now is a match with Spassky, which will be held next April and May, with the site still to be selected.
Fischer already has established one record. He will be the first American ever to play a match for the championship, which has been held by the Russians since 1948.
That was the year Mikhail Botvinnik won the championship match to succeed Dr. Alexander Alekhine, a Russian who became a French citizen after the 1917 revolution in his homeland. Alekhine was still champion when he died in 1945.
The Fischer-Petrosian match can be divided into two phases. For the first five games it was a contest, with Petrosian taking the edge. Fischer won the first game, but only after Petrosian missed winning chances in the opening and middle game, and then misplayed a drawn ending.
Tigran's Peak
The second game was won by Petrosian, certainly his best of the match, Fischer's king was caught in the center, after he was outplayed in the opening. Petrosian started a slashing attack, which he carried through to a superb finish.
The third game was a see-saw affair, ending when Petrosian allowed a third repetition of a position, for an automatic draw which Fischer thankfully claimed.
The fourth and fifth games were drawn, with the score remaining deadlocked at 2½ points each.
Then, either Petrosian weakened or Fischer went back to the superb play of his record winning streak. It may have been a little of both.
At any rate, the sixth through ninth games were Fischer. In each case Petrosian made slight positional errors in the early play. Against practically anyone else, these would not have had serious consequences. Fischer's technique and accuracy in the end games were adequate to the task, and four successive wins dashed Petrosian's hopes.
Defense Fails
A major surprise was Petrosian's failure in defense. He was considered among the best in the world in this department, rarely losing a game in competition. Yet he seemed helpless in each of the final four games.
Only in the ninth game did Petrosian fight back gamely. He was three pawns behind, with apparently nothing left. He found a possibility of weaving a mating net around Fischer's king, and came close to success.
Fischer found the answer by giving up a knight and winding up with five free pawns that could not be held.
