Vasif Durarbayli is a new Azerbaijan Champion. The 29-year old native of Sumgait won his first national title and punched a ticket to the FIDE World Cup.
The Azerbaijani Championship took place in Nakhchivan from May 03-18 2021 and was held in two stages. Twelve participants competed in a round-robin with the top four advancing to the knockout stage. Each match consisted of two classical games. If tied, a 2-game rapid match (15 min + 10 seconds) was played, followed by a blitz portion (5 min +3 second) and an Armageddon game if needed.
Vasif Durarbayli, Nijat Abasov, Eltaj Safarli, and Nidjat Mamedov (2609) advanced to the playoff stage:
1 | GM | Durarbayli, Vasif | 2606 | 7½ |
2 | GM | Abasov, Nijat | 2665 | 7 |
3 | GM | Safarli, Eltaj | 2598 | 7 |
4 | GM | Mamedov, Nidjat | 2609 | 6½ |
5 | GM | Asadli, Vugar | 2572 | 6½ |
6 | IM | Suleymanli, Aydin | 2535 | 6 |
7 | GM | Abbasov, Farid | 2528 | 5½ |
8 | IM | Muradli, Mahammad | 2449 | 5½ |
9 | GM | Iskandarov, Misratdin | 2535 | 5½ |
10 | IM | Gadimbayli, Abdulla | 2470 | 4 |
11 | IM | Garayev, Kanan | 2331 | 3½ |
12 | GM | Sevdimaliyev, Urfan | 2371 | 1½ |
In the semifinals, Vasif Durarbayli whitewashed Nidjat Mamedov whereas Nijat Abasov prevailed over Eltaj Safarli in the rapid games after two draws in classical format.
In a dramatic final match, the future champion lost the third game with white pieces after two draws and found himself in a do-or-die situation. Durarbayli went through a lost position with black in Game 4 but managed to turn the tables on his opponent, levelled the score, and went on to win both blitz encounters.
In the match for third place, Nidjat Mamedov defeated Eltaj Safarli and took bronze.
Official website: asf.org.az
Photo: official website of Azerbaijan Chess Federation