Abdullayev, Elshad

Elshad Abdullayev, a 35-year-old Azerbaijani Candidate Master, is rated 2120 and sitting in the top 6% of players worldwide. He has held steady between 2100 and 2150 for 13 months. 17 rated games in the past year (≈10/year long-term). Recent appearance: 31stAbuDhabiInternationalChess Festival-Open A. Also played 2 rapid (including Lankaran Open 2025, Rapid) and 1 blitz events (including Lankaran Open 2025, Blitz) recently. He had 6 career breaks: 33 months (2008–2010), 20 months (2011–2013), 26 months (2014–2017), 16 months (2018–2019), 35 months (2019–2022, COVID-19 included) and 23 months (2022–2024). His peak of 2223 was reached at age 28 (Sep 2019); he also reached Azerbaijani #62 in Sep 2022.

Awarded CM in 2026 (age 35). At junior level, he reached #7, #9 and #4 nationally in U20, U18 and U16.