Chess’ human eval bars: How commentators like Sagar Shah, Tania Sachdev became the voice of the sport

A swarm of selfie talkers and autograph seekers excitedly surround a man in the orange Hawaiian shirt one evening at Resort Rio, the venue for the FIDE World Cup . He’s not a grandmaster. At least yet. But International Master Sagar Shah, courtesy of his daily live streams, is fast becoming the voice and face of the sport, at least on YouTube. While Shah signs autographs before hurrying away to re-join the broadcast studio, a bona fide grandmaster, one of India’s top ones, walks quietly past the gaggle of fans unnoticed.

Such is the nature of chess these days that commentators have become as big, if not bigger, than many elite chess players. Shah is not the only one getting mobbed for autographs and selfies. Tania Sachdev, who transitioned to commentary a few years back and is the face