The Province Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada Wednesday, June 02, 1971 - Page 25
World Chess Match - Fischer Poised For Sixth Win by Paul Raugust
American Bobby Fischer's bid to make a sweep of his world chess title elimination match with Mark Taimanov of the Soviet Union was temporarily halted on Tuesday night when the Russian grandmaster asked for an adjournment in the sixth game of their match.
Taimanov has lost all give games played in the match so far, the worst drubbing a grandmaster has taken in recent memory. Fischer can take the match with a win or draw when play resumes today.
The deciding sixth game was adjourned on the 43rd move after nearly five hours' play. Fischer was in a commanding position with a two-pawn advantage.
For the third time that he has played white in the current match, Fischer opened with the confident P-K4 move to set the stage for a Sicilian Defense.
Fischer took control of center early in the game and forced the Soviet grandmaster into a defensive position. The American's foraging bishop's split Taimanov's pawns into three vulnerable groups. At adjournment two of Taimanov's three remaining pawns stood unprotected.
Experts regarded the game as a certain victory for Fischer. If the American wins he will have become one of four men in the running to unseat world champion Boris Spassky of Moscow.
The four are survivors of the quarter-finals of the challengers' tournament that will reach a climax in September when two finalists battle for the right to meet Spassky in Moscow next year.
Soviet grandmaster Tigran Petrosian, who lost the world title to Spassky in 1969, was the first to reach the semi-finals when Robert Huebner of West Germany gave up eight days ago. Petrosian was leading 4-3 in Seville, Spain.
On Monday Bent Larsen of Denmark and Soviet grandmaster Viktor Korchnoi reached the semi-finals.
Larsen, playing at Las Palmas, Canary Islands, defeated Wolfgang Uhlmann of East Germany 5½-3½. Korchnoi beat countryman Yefim Geller 5½-2½ in Moscow.
Semi-finals are to begin on July 4 with Korchnoi playing Petrosian in Moscow. Larsen will meet the winner of the Fischer-Taimanov match at a site to be determined.
Of the semi-finalists, Fischer will be the only newcomer to that elite upper level of chess competition. He previously shunned the challengers' tournament.
