Caricature “Before the rematch” between Tal and Botvinnik

The 1961 caricature “Before the rematch” by G. Kovanov portrays Mikhail Tal and Mikhail Botvinnik as two knights crossing their swords.They stand atop rooks near the Moscow River, while a massive crowd of spectators cheers from the opposite bank.

The 1961 World Championship was a rematch between Mikhail Botvinnik and Mikhail Tal. Tal had dethroned Botvinnik the previous year. According to the rules at the time, the world champion who lost their title was entitled to a rematch the following year. The match consisted of 24 games, and Botvinnik emerged victorious with a convincing score of 13–8, thus regaining the world championship title.