Three Indian Teams Reach Semifinals in 5th Asia Cup Bridge Championship

Panjim, June 26: After the conclusion of the round-robin stage, three teams from host India have advanced to the semifinals of the 5th Asia Cup Bridge Championship. Competing under the ‘1 vs 4’ and ‘2 vs 3’ formats, India A (Men), India A (Women), and India B (Senior) have qualified for the knockout rounds.

The Indian contingent features several top bridge players, including Hemant K. Jalan, Sukamal Das, Rajesh Dalal, Jitendra Solani, Anil Padhye, and Raju Tolani. The senior squad, India B, topped the Swiss League standings, securing their place as the highest-ranked team in the knockout stage.

In the semifinals held at ‘Taj Cidade de Goa Horizon’, India B will face Japan at Table 31, while Australia will compete against Bangladesh at Table 32. A victory for India B will propel them into the championship final, keeping their title hopes alive. Meanwhile, after a challenging final day, the India Senior A team finished in sixth place with 142.70 Victory Points (VP).

In the men’s division, China led the standings with 218.31 VP, followed by Hong Kong-China A at 196.72 VP. India A secured third place with 186.47 VP and will face Hong Kong-China A in the semifinals. Bangladesh B narrowly edged out India B with 173.66 VP, claiming the fourth qualifying spot. India now focuses on a crucial semifinal against the consistently strong Hong Kong-China A team, with a spot in the final at stake.

In the women’s division, defending champions China topped the standings with 124.66 VP, followed by Indonesia at 108.23 VP. India A finished third with 105.39 VP, while Japan qualified fourth with 89.14 VP. In the semifinals, China will compete against Japan at Table 11, and Indonesia will face India A at Table 12, where the Indian women’s team aims to continue their impressive performance.

In the mixed division, China A (169.23) and China B (163.02) secured the top two spots, while Hong Kong-China A (155.43) and Australia A (141.14) completed the semifinal lineup. India B finished fifth with 135.90 VP, narrowly missing qualification despite a strong final round. India A ended up in 11th place.

With three Indian teams competing in the men’s, women’s, and senior events, the host nation maintains a strong presence in the championship’s knockout stage. All semifinal matches across the four divisions will be played on Friday in three sessions (09:30–11:45, 12:45–15:00, and 15:20–17:35), with the grand final scheduled for Saturday.