Asbury Park Press Asbury Park, New Jersey Sunday, November 07, 1971 - Page 38
The Chessboard: Match Game a Short Draw by Harry T. Conover
An oddity in Bobby Fischer's career was the 20-move draw he played against Tigran Petrosian of the Soviet Union in the fourth game of their match in Buenos Aires.
Since it is a well known fact that the United States grandmaster always plays to win, suffice to say that early exchanges had bled the position white so that there was no play left in it.
The English Opening, 1. P-QB4, selected by Petrosian, was soon turned into a Sicilian Defense by Fischer who advanced his queen bishop's pawn two squares on his first move. A position evolved in which neither side could show any advantage.
After the disappearance of the heavy pieces, there was nothing left to continue the fight, so the draw was fully justified.
Here is the score:
Sicilian Defense
Petrosian (White) vs. Fischer (Black)
1. c4 c5 (Black invites a transposition to the Maroczy Variation of the Sicilian Defense. The once feared Maroczy Bind that evolves from the following order of moves: 1. P-K4, P-QB4; 2. N-KB3 N-QB3; 3. P-Q4 PxP; 4. NxP P-KN3; 5. P-QB4 (the Maroczy Bind) is arrived at in the present game by transposition. Modern practice has shorn the bind of most of its terrors.)
2. Nf3 g6
3. d4 cxd4
4. Nxd4 Nc6 (Against Flohr at Sliac, 1932, Engels played 5. … B-N2 and White got the better of it after 6. N-B2 (6. B-K3 and 6. N-N3 also are good), N-B3; 7. N-B3 P-Q3; 8. B-K2 N-Q2; 9. Q-Q2 N-B4; 10. P-QN4 N-K3; 11. B-N2 O-O; 12. O-O N(B3)-Q5; 13. NxN 14. B-Q.)
5. e4 Nf6
6. Nc3 d6
7. f3 … (Relieving the queen's knight of the task of guarding the king's pawn and at the same time preventing the annoying 7. … B-N5.)
7. … Nxd4
8. Qxd4 Bg7
9. Be3 (Since the queen is safe on Q4 for the moment despite the veiled attack by the Black king's bishop, White can continue his normal development.
9. … O-O
10. Qd2 Qa5 (A familiar sortie in the Sicilian, giving the Black queen the option of shuttling to the kingside should circumstances so dictate.
11. Rc1 Be6
12. b3 … (Cautiously overprotecting the queen's bishop's pawn.)
12. … Rac8
13. Be2 a6 (Black prepares the thrust P-QN4 with queenside pressure, but White is prepared.)
14. Nd5 Qxd2+
15. Kxd2 Nxd5
16. cxd5 Bd7
17. Rxc8 Rxc8
18. Rc1 Rxc1 (The slaughter has become rather heavy.)
19. Kxc1 Kf8
20. Kc2 e6 (Here, Fischer offered a draw which Petrosian quickly accepted.)
1/2-1/2
Tigran Vartanovich Petrosian vs Robert James Fischer Fischer - Petrosian Candidates Final (1971), Buenos Aires ARG, rd 4, Oct-12 English Opening: Symmetrical Variation. General (A30) 1/2-1/2 https://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1106924
