Chess with Mustreader

Try Chessreps and check out my lines here: https://www.chessreps.com/opening/mustreader-s-milner-barry-gambit-vs-the-french-6sbbek7 Today I’m joined by Vidit Gujrathi — one of India’s strongest grandmasters, a Chess Olympiad winner, and a Candidates Tournament participant. We haven’t seen Vidit at many major classical events lately, so we talked about where he’s been, why he decided to step back,...

Try Chessreps and check out my lines here: https://www.chessreps.com/opening/mustreader-s-milner-barry-gambit-vs-the-french-6sbbek7 Today I’m joined by a young super-GM Awonder Liang. We talked about his matches against Hikaru Nakamura and Hans Niemann, the 2026 Candidates, and the discontinued Webster chess program. Awonder also shared his thoughts on chess mindset, playing under stress, what it...

Try Chessreps and check out my lines here: https://www.chessreps.com/opening/mustreader-s-milner-barry-gambit-vs-the-french-6sbbek7 Today I’m joined by chess legend GM Peter Svidler — World Cup winner, former World No. 4, elite commentator, second, and one of the most fascinating voices in chess. We discuss his career path, the dreams he never fully achieved, and why GYM matters more than most pla...

Try Chessreps and check out my lines here: https://www.chessreps.com/opening/mustreader-s-milner-barry-gambit-vs-the-french-6sbbek7 Today I’m joined by one of the strongest GMs, World No. 4 Nodirbek Abdusattorov. Everyone has been wondering what changed — why is Nodirbek suddenly crushing everyone and winning tournaments? We talked about his training, his mindset, and his plans to fight for the ch...

Try Chessreps and check out my lines here: https://www.chessreps.com/opening/mustreader-s-milner-barry-gambit-vs-the-french-6sbbek Today I’m joined by one of the best chess players in the world — GM Maxime Vachier-Lagrave. We dive into the biggest topics in chess right now: the 2026 calendar clash, Hikaru’s criticism video, chess as part of esports, the 2026 Olympiad, and more. MVL also explains w...

Try Chessreps and check out my lines here: https://www.chessreps.com/opening/mustreader-s-milner-barry-gambit-vs-the-french-6sbbek7 Today I’m joined by Jan Henric Buettner — co-founder of Freestyle Chess, one of the boldest projects in the chess world. We talk about why chess, in its current form, may never truly become mainstream, what has to change, and what chess can learn from Formula 1. We al...

Learn the rare Four Knights with a3 on Chessreps: https://www.chessreps.com/opening/mustreader-s-4-a3-in-the-four-knights-vbnf1t0 Imagine a future Magnus match nobody expected — one that could grab the entire chess world’s attention and attract new sponsors. Sounds wild, right? My guest, Oleg Skvortsov, is a major chess patron and tournament organizer who’s deeply involved in how modern chess is m...

Learn the rare Four Knights with a3 on Chessreps: https://www.chessreps.com/course-creator/mustreader-s-4-a3-in-the-four-knights-vbnf1t0 Today my guest is one of the world’s top GMs and a 2026 Candidates participant — Wei Yi. We talk about his preparation for the 2026 Candidates, the mental struggles he had to overcome, and whom he sees as the main favorites. Wei also shares why Gukesh hasn’t look...

Check out the King's Gambit and other openings on Chessreps: https://www.chessreps.com/opening/kings-gambit Today my guest is IM John Bartholomew — one of the original chess YouTubers, chess coach, and a former co-founder of Chessable. We talk about what chess YouTube was like back in 2014, the gap between IMs and GMs, and whether Levy aka GothamChess can still make the GM title. We also discuss h...

Try Chessreps and check out the gambit against the French: https://www.chessreps.com/opening/mustreader-s-milner-barry-gambit-vs-the-french-6sbbek7 Today my guest is one of the world’s top players and a 2026 Candidates participant — Anish Giri! We cover all the hottest topics: how Anish is preparing for the Candidates, who he thinks are the main favorites, why the Candidates matter so much for Hik...

2025 has been a wild year in chess: huge events, big drama, and an insane level of play. So I sat down with GM Felix Blohberger — Austrian Champion, commentator, and content creator — to recap the year and look ahead to 2026. We talk about the dominance of the young generation, the biggest trends in modern chess, and the key events of 2025 — including the World Cup, the Grand Swiss, and the 2026 C...

Today my guest is the chess legend Boris Gelfand — a six-time Candidates participant, winner of the 2009 World Cup, and the 2012 World Championship challenger. We talk about modern chess, the young generation, Magnus Carlsen, and the upcoming 2026 Candidates. Boris also shares how he trains his students and what every chess player must understand about decision-making. Plus stories from his prime...

Peter’s course on Chess Structures: http://go.chess.com/chessstructures My referral link to chess.com: https://go.chess.com/mustreader Today my guest is Peter Heine Nielsen, the legendary coach who worked behind the scenes for both Vishy Anand and Magnus Carlsen during their World Championship reigns. We talk about what life inside Team Magnus really looks like, how Magnus’s preparation has change...

Volen's Alien Gambit course: https://go.chess.com/aliengambit Referral link to chess.com: https://go.chess.com/mustreader Volen’s email for sponsorships: volen1999@gmail.com If you’ve ever wanted to play totally crazy chess and still win, this conversation with Volen "Witty Alien" Dyulgerov is for you. He explains how he created the Alien and Martian Gambits, why they keep scoring against strong o...

Today’s guest is GM Jacob Aagaard — one of the most influential chess coaches and authors in the world. He has worked with players such as Boris Gelfand, Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa, Nodirbek Abdusattorov, among many others, and even Magnus Carlsen has studied his books. We talk about the real path to the GM title: what you actually need to do, why so many strong players never get there, and how Jac...

My referral link to ChessCom: https://go.chess.com/mustreader Nepo's course on the King’s Gambit: http://go.chess.com/nepokingsgambit Anish Giri’s course on the French Defence: http://go.chess.com/girisfrenchdefense Sam Shankland’s Chess Calculation WorkBook: http://go.chess.com/shanklandsworkbook Today’s guest is the legendary Levon Aronian — at 42, still one of the world’s strongest players. We...

What makes a world-class chess player? Few people can answer that better than GM Vladimir Chuchelov. The coach behind some of the top players talks about working with Fabiano Caruana and Anish Giri, shares insights on coaching and chess improvement, and the conversation turns to the once-heated debate over Caruana’s “natural talent”, including Daniil Dubov’s comments. Vladimir closes by offering a...

My referral link to ChessCom: https://go.chess.com/mustreader Nepo's course on the King’s Gambit: http://go.chess.com/nepokingsgambit Anish Giri’s course on the French Defence: http://go.chess.com/girisfrenchdefense Sam Shankland’s Chess Calculation WorkBook: http://go.chess.com/shanklandsworkbook This is one of the most heartbreaking conversations I've ever recorded. GM David Navara — one of Czec...

Today's guest is a legend of Kazakh chess — GM Darmen Sadvakasov! Former World U20 Champion who defeated Anatoly Karpov in 2004 and beat the world's strongest grandmasters, he was forced to abandon his professional chess career at his peak. Why did he make this painful decision? How did he return to transform Kazakhstan into a chess superpower and was behind the massive support system for young ta...

Try out for free James' course on Jobava London: https://go.chess.com/mustreader20 In this episode, James Canty III reveals why hitting the gym is the ultimate Elo booster and how he sustained a 2000-day uninterrupted chess streak. Learn his secrets for juggling chess, boxing, workouts, investments, and content creation, along with his plan to earn the GM title. We also duscuss his passion for rap...

How to beat the engine? Larry Kaufman, one of the minds behind top chess engines, explains Leela’s odds bot and why grandmasters can’t beat the engine. Learn strategies to outplay the engine and find out if Magnus & Hikaru can stand up to Leela. Larry also shares the thrilling story of his rise to become the top-ranked non-Japanese shogi player and Kasparov’s chess games against the best shogi...

In this interview, GM Vladimir Fedoseev discusses his recent victory at Superbet Rapid & Blitz and the significant sacrifices he made to compete at this level. We explore Magnus Carlsen's comments about Fedoseev's unique style, his Candidates qualification goals, and insights on the Chess960 / Freestyle Chess format where top players are already developing repertoires. Plus, the hot topic of c...

Today my guest is GM Felix Blohberger, the chess champion of Austria. We discussed the dark side of professional chess: making a living with a 2500 rating, the two key areas you must analyze after tournaments, and a psychological trick that instantly boosts confidence. Felix reveals if you need a sports psychologist and how his workout routine enhances chess performance. Plus: blitz at the end! Su...

My upcoming tournaments in Kazakhstan: https://opencups.kazchess.kz/ Legendary GM Susan Polgar, 8th Women's World Chess Champion, joined my podcast! We discussed women's chess and why it's difficult for women to reach the top of the open rating. Susan shared amazing stories about her acquaintance with Fischer and how they created CHESS960 together. Bonus: her thoughts on women-only tournaments, Gu...

Try Chessbook and my gambit repertoire: https://chessbook.com/mustreader Today's special guest is Danny Rensch — Chess.com's Chief Chess Officer! We’ve discussed many hot topics: Hans' against chess.com, how FIDE and other organizers ignore cheating problems and why 2025 will be HUGE for chess. Danny shared how they banned top GMs and WHY the Hikaru-Magnus match never happened in 2023. Bonus: two...