International bridge a success: federation

Foreign players satisfied with Pakistan Day Championship.

KARACHI: Organisers of the Pakistan Day Bridge Championship declared the event a big success in terms of its quality and international participation.

According to event director Ahsan Qadir, the tournament organised by the Pakistan Bridge Federation was an expensive one, with Rs5 million being spent on the arrangements and offering a prize-money of $7,000.

Nevertheless, the official agreed that the amount was well spent as it opened doors for Pakistan in the international circuit.

The event featured as many as 333 players and 35 teams in the championship. Foreign teams from the UK, the UAE, Turkey, Jordan and China were a part of the competition.

Jason Hacket, member of the winning team UK2, said his first trip to Pakistan was a good experience for him.

“The hospitality here was amazing,” Jason told The Express Tribune. “We were looked after very well.

“Before coming here, we were warned about the security situation in Pakistan. But we feel safe here and the quality of the competition was also better than we expected. There was no cheating.”

Meanwhile, Jason’s brother and teammate Justin Hacket said that Pakistan has the potential to perform well in the international events. He recalled that Pakistan had defeated the UK in the quarter-finals of the bridge Olympiad 2003 in Istanbul.

“Bridge requires fair play as well as patience,” said Justin. “This tournament particularly was a little exhausting with 60 boards a day. However, it’s rewarding.”

Meanwhile, Raza Naqvi of local team Foxy pointed out that the game needs promotion among the public in Pakistan.

Team Saya’s Tibraiz Javaid said the local players should learn from the foreign players.

“We should learn not to fight with our partner during the game,” said Javaid. “Our players have the habit of doing that, while the players in foreign teams understand each other better.”

Published in The Express Tribune, March 25^th, 2014.

Like Sports on Facebook, follow @ETribuneSports on Twitter to stay informed and join in the conversation.a