Pakistan name team for championship

Scrabble gets boost as Pakistan Scrabble Association names team to send players to Manila.

KARACHI: The Pakistan Scrabble Association (PSA) named a seven-member team for the fifth World Youth Scrabble Championship that will be held from December 8 to 10.

The participants were chosen from the 12th inter-school tournament that took place earlier this month and out of the 400 players, 20 were picked for the final qualifying tournament that was held on October 10. The top four players – Shahzaib Khatri, Minhajuddin Ahmed, Shahroz Ansari and Yousuf Baqir – booked their place in the championship while the association is still looking for sponsors for the remaining three players: Javeria Mirza, Jahanzaib Shakeel and Umair Khalidi.

“Pakistan scrabble players are performing better than the cricket and hockey players together,” PSA founding member Nadeem Omar told The Express Tribune. “For example Waseem Khatri attained  41st position in the world championships this year.”

Published in The Express Tribune, October 24^th, 2010.