Kasparov Calls a Chess Timeout

World chess champion Gary Kasparov took his final timeout Wednesday, postponing the 22nd game of his title contest against challenger Anatoly Karpov until Friday, organizers said.

With just three games remaining, the score is even at 10 1/2 points for each player. Kasparov retains the advantage in the 24-game contest, however, because in the event of a 12-12 tie, he will keep his crown.

Experts said that Kasparov will use the break period to prepare his strategy for the 22nd game, in which he will play with the advantage of the white pieces.

Each player may use three timeouts during the 10-week struggle. Karpov has one timeout remaining.

A victory counts one point and a draw half a point. Each player has scored three victories with 15 games drawn.