Panaji, Goa, June 25 (IANS) Host nation India has advanced three teams into the semifinals of the 5th Asia Cup Bridge Championships, following the conclusion of the round-robin stages at the Taj Cidade de Goa Horizon on Thursday.

India A (Men), India A (Women), and India B (Seniors) all qualified for the knockout rounds under the tournament’s 1 versus 4 and 2 versus 3 format. The Indian contingent features several accomplished bridge players, including Hemant K. Jalan, Sukamal Das, Rajesh Dalal, Jitendra Solani, Anil Padhye, and Raju Tolani, as Team India B of the Seniors squad enters the knockout stage as the top-ranked team in the division after finishing first in the Swiss league standings.

India B will face Japan in the semifinals on Table 31, while Australia meets Bangladesh on Table 32. A victory in the semifinals will take India B into the championship final, keeping the team firmly in contention for the title. India Seniors A, meanwhile, finished sixth with 142.70 VPs after a challenging final day.

In the Men’s Division, China led the standings with 218.31 VPs, followed by Hong Kong China A (196.72). India A secured third place with 186.47 VPs, setting up a semifinal clash against Hong Kong-China A on Table 2. Bangladesh B (173.66) narrowly edged India B (172.03) to claim the fourth qualifying spot. India now looks forward to a crucial semifinal against the strong and consistent Hong Kong China A side, with a place in the final at stake.

In the Women’s Division, defending champions China finished first with 124.66 VPs, followed by Indonesia (108.23). India A placed third with 105.39 VPs, while Japan qualified fourth with 89.14. The semifinals pair China against Japan on Table 11 and Indonesia against India A on Table 12, with the Indian women aiming to continue their impressive campaign.

In the Mixed Division, China A (169.23) and China B (163.02) secured the top two positions, with Hong Kong China A (155.43) and Australia A (141.14) completing the semifinal lineup. India B finished fifth with 135.90 VPs, missing qualification by a narrow margin despite registering a strong victory in the final segment. India A finished eleventh.

With three Indian squads in contention across the Men’s, Women’s, and Seniors events, the host nation remains strongly represented as the championship enters the knockout stage. All semifinal sessions 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 Finals scheduled for Saturday.

–IANS

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