It’s not gambling but brainy sport

Jakarta, Sept. 1: The incident happened some years back and it’s still vivid in the memory of Asian Games gold medallist bridge player Pranab Bardhan.

The 60-year-old Bardhan was then getting ready to represent India in an international competition in Montreal but he needed to renew his passport. But the officer at the passport office, scrutinising his application form made an allegedly offensive remark.

“He (passport officer) asked me, aap jua khelne Canada jaa rahein hain (you are going to Canada to take part in gambling). I told him you have not read my file properly. He was an educated man but still did not know, it’s a sport and not gambling,” Bardhan, who became India’s oldest gold medal winner at the Asiad, spoke about how perceptions rule our society.

Bardhan says a game of bridge requires more intellect than chess. “It is a game based on logic. It’s a mind game like chess but more challenging. In chess, you play one against one. Here you are playing with your partner, with whom you can’t speak during the match. You have to understand

Bridge is a game based on logic. It’s a mind game like chess but more challenging. In chess, you play one against one. Here you are playing with your partner, with whom you can’t speak during the match. You have to understand, judge each other’s moves. — PRANAB BARDHAN gold medallist

each other’s moves. You have to judge, what I am thinking with my cards,” Bardhan said.

“It’s definitely not gambling. Everybody gets the same hand (first set of cards), so no luck is involved. It’s up to you to respond to the situation,” said Bardhan who has been playing with Sarkar as a team for 20 years.

His partner, 56-year-old Shibhnath Sarkar feels that contrary to popular perception, bridge is a game of young people and not the senior citizens. “The Singapore team had young players. There are a lot of players who are in their 20s. It’s also not a sport for the elite. In West Bengal, you have all kind of people playing the sport,” he said. — PTI