The final round game which decided the 2022 British championship at Torquay turned out to be a 75-move epic which had everything. Its protagonists were both Cambridge students: Harry Grieve, 21, mathematics, and Matthew Wadsworth, 22, economics. They were colleagues in their university chess club, but went for each other with zestful imagination in one of the best ever championship deciders.
A sharp opening with a material imbalance was followed by a knight retreat from f3 to its starting square g1, two exchange sacrifices, a winning king march, four queens on the board at the same time, and finally a queen sacrifice to force checkmate. It was a memorable encounter, worthy of its occasion.
