Caissanist: Here is the portion of the interview that returnoftheking referred to:EVANS: Do you think Karpov was happy to get the title without playing Fischer?
AVERBAKH: Of course. Karpov was afraid of Fischer in 1975. Who wouldn’t like to get the title by default?
EVANS: Do you think that’s the main reason why Karpov was so active after that: to prove he was really worthy of the title?
AVERBAKH: For Karpov, you know, money is very important. This is his main stimulus. He may lose to Kasparov, but he is always well compensated for it.
EVANS: Why do you think the first K-K match was stopped in 1985?
AVERBAKH: For me it’s completely clear. Because Karpov couldn’t continue at all.
EVANS: Was he suffering from nervous exhaustion?
AVERBAKH: The chief of his delegation Baturinsky told me that he tried his best to convince Karpov to play on, but that Karpov simply couldn’t play despite his two-game lead. He needed a postponement.
I rest my case. Karpov was ahead, but it was he who wanted a postponement. Kasparov trailed, but he had the momentum, the physical and mental stamina.
It was illegal, in my opinion, for the FIDE President to come and step in and portpone the match. This was done because the Soviet Chess Federation favored Karpov. Kasparov is Jewish, and the Soviet Chess Federation has never been too kind to Jewish chessplayers, such as Bronstein, Boleslavsky and Stein.
It was very transparent and clear, as it still is, that Karpov wanted the match stopped, and that the Soviet Chess Federation interfered with the World Championship by asking Campomanes to stop the match. It was a disgrace! And it is a blotch on FIDE's reputation....which caused Kasparov to resent FIDE, and might have been the beginning of his animosity towards this organization, culminating in the split in 1993.
If one of the opponents cannot continue, then he should lose by forfeit. It is not Kasparov's fault if Karpov did not have the stamina, mental or physical, to continue.
You are, of course, entitled to your opinion, and I respect it, although I disagree fully
