Having started in Buenos Aires, we have come via France, Poland, Turkey and Australia to our fourth continent this month, Asia. Welcome to Lahore which, with a population marginally higher than Paris, is the second-largest city in Pakistan. Located on the River Ravi in the northeast of the country, Lahore is the historic capital and the cultural centre of the Punjab region.

We are here for the 22^nd running of the bi-annual Bridge Federation of Asia and the Middle East Championships, and the week-long team events in Open, Women’s, Mixed and Seniors categories. India, Jordan and Pakistan sent teams for all four events in pursuit of BFAME champions titles. In the Open, they are joined by Bangladesh and UAE, in the Women’s by Palestine and UAE, and in the Mixed by UAE. The Seniors event is a three-way battle.

The format in the Open and Women’s is a triple round robin qualifier, consisting of 15 rounds, during which each team will play 12 16-board matches, three against each other team. (For the purpose of running scores, the sitting-out team scores 10 VPs.) At the end of qualifying, the leading team will have choice of opponents in the quarter final. That choice could prove even more critical that usual here, as the two winning semi-finalists both earn a place in the upcoming Bermuda Bowl and Venice Cup.

As usual, we begin with some problems. Firstly, with neither side vulnerable, you are sitting in the East seat with:

What action, if any, do you take?

Next, with only your opponents vulnerable, you are South holding:

Your 4♦ overcall shows a strong hand with at least 5-5 in the red suits.

What action, if any, do you take? What would you do if partner instead bid 5♥?

Next, with both sides vulnerable, you hold in the West seat:

What action, if any, do you take?

Next, with both sides vulnerable, you hold in the East seat:

What action, if any, do you take?

Finally, with neither side vulnerable, you are East with this collection:

What do you open?

While you contemplate those, we start our first round-up of the highlights from the qualifying round robins in Round 2 of the Women’s event, with the first meeting of INDIA and PAKISTAN. With ten boards played, the score was a sedate 8-6 to PAKISTAN, then The Great Dealer woke up, presenting both East players with the first of the problems above.

At both tables, the auction started, quite reasonably, 1♥-2♦-4♥, leaving the East players with the problem posed at the top. Puja Batra (left), one of the three members of this Indian team who played in last year’s Venice Cup, chose to double. Asha Sharma retreated to 5♦ on the West hand and then doubled when Rubina Saeed Hai backed in with 5♥.

Had Sharma led her singleton spade, the defence would have scored four tricks. On the top club lead declarer avoided the ruff and lost just the three aces. E/W +100 looked like a poor return on those E/W cards.

Fatima Raza (right) made her debut in the Pakistan Women’s team at the 2013 Venice Cup in Bali and has been a regular member since. She also finished in the top 20 in the final of the 2018 World Women’s Pairs in Orlando.

In the same situation, Raza preferred to bid 5♣ on the East cards. South competed to 5♥, but Qudsia Dossa had an easy raise to 6 ♣. The Indians might have limited the damage by taking the save at the six-level, but might then have been forced to sacrifice a level higher had they done so. With the diamond finesse working, declarer had no problem taking 13 tricks: E/W +940 and 13 IMPs to PAKISTAN

INDIA won a tight match 33-30 and we can no doubt look forward to the continuation of what looks like a fairly evenly-matched battle throughout the week.

In Round 3, we get our first look at the Open event, with the meeting of INDIA and JORDAN. INDIA led 37-36 when the final deal of the match arrived at the tables.  

Raju Tolani and Ajay Khare (left) are the only members of this strong Indian team who were not members of the national team at the 2022 Bermuda Bowl. However, neither lacks experience, both having made their international debut at the 1994 World Championships in Albuquerque.

Tolani got things off to a good start for the Indians with his third-seat weak 2♠ opening on the East cards. Khare then iced the cake with his 4♠ bid at red after Aaida Abu-Jaber had intervened with a Leaping Michaels bid, showing a good hand with both red suits.

With losers in both black suits, it is hard to see that Sakher Malkawi can bid any more than five of one of the red suits, which leaves South with the second of this week’s problems. Yes, Abu-Jaber can infer the singleton spade opposite, but there is surely no guarantee that the red suits are both solid. Well done to the Indian pair for making life extremely difficult for their opponents. Khare led the right ace to save the second overtrick: N/S +420.

George Kashami started with 1♠ on the East cards and Jaggy Shivdasani, the most experienced of this Indian team, settled for a gentle 2♥ overcall. Clement Maamarbachi might have done more than raise to 2♠, and his reticence allowed Sandeep Thakral to make a value-showing raised to game via a cue-bid. Kashami’s 4♠ bid did not inconvenience Shivdasani, who advanced with 5♦. Thakral doubled 5♠, but Shivdasani wasn’t interested in defending, even as these colours.

Maamarbachi opened the ♣A. Dummy’s spade eventually disappeared on declarer’s long diamond, and thus Shivdasani made all 13 tricks: N/S +1010 and 11 IMPs to INDIA, who won the match 48-36.

We return to the Women’s event for Round 4, and PAKISTAN v JORDAN.  PAKISTAN had built a moderate lead when this deal arrived…

Too strong for a 1NT overcall, Amal Fakhouri had to start with a takeout double on the West hand. North’s 1NT was then passed back to her, posing the third of this week’s problems. Would you have found the pass necessary to at least restrict your losses on the deal? Fakhouri bid 2NT, fairly accurately describing her 20-21 balanced hand, but what was her partner supposed to do with that information? Mercifully, neither Pakistan player could find a double. Declarer made the obvious two diamonds and two aces, but that was all: E/W -400.

A second double fares even worse. If it ends the auction, N/S make two overtricks in 1NT-X for E/W -580, and if East pulls to 2♦, then the doubling starts. It would seem almost impossible for N/S to go minus on this layout, but where there’s a will…

Qudsia Dossa (right) made her debut in the Pakistan Women’s team at the 2000 World Team Olympiad and she has now been a regular member for more than two decades. She finished second in this event in 2009.

Dossa also started with a takeout double on the West hand. Playing transfers after 1M-X, Lina Al Masri did not have a natural 1NT bid available, so she had to choose between passing and a transfer to diamonds. She opted to bid, which was unfortunate. Not only was 2♦-X about the only contract N/S could not make but, had Masri passed, East would have bid 2♦ and she could then have wielded the axe.

Dossa found the excellent lead of a low club against South’s 2♦-X, limiting declarer to six tricks. E/W +500 and 14 IMPs to PAKISTAN.

PAKISTAN won the match 63-16. That translated to 18.87 VPs and carried PAKISTAN ahead of INDIA to the top of the leader-board after four rounds.

We conclude our first visit to Lahore with the Round 5 meeting of the two pre-tournament favorites in the Open series, INDIA and PAKISTAN. Those watching live on BBO VuGraph were not disappointed by a contest that ebbed and flowed, and promises to provide a number of epic confrontations over the coming days. INDIA had their noses just in front as the match drew to a close, when both East players picked up the last of this week’s problems.

Jaggy Shivdasani opted for the pressure bid, and there is no debating that 4♠ will sometimes be the winning action on this East hand. Unfortunately for the Indians, he found his partner with the good hand. Slam is excellent, but not in spades. There was not much that Sandeep Thakral could other than put down dummy. There was an ace and a trump trick to lose: E/W +450.

Mubashir Puri (left) made his first international appearance as a member of the Pakistan Under-28 team at the 2008 World Bridge Games. On his debut in Pakistan’s Open team, he finished second in this event in 2009.

On this deal, Puri’s 1♠ opening led to an efficient dialogue in which hearts were agreed at the three-level. A series of cue-bids then guided the Pakistan pair to the top spot. Rajeshwar Tewari led a spade and dummy’s ten was covered by the queen and ruffed by declarer. Tehseen Gheewala then drove out the trump ace and subsequently pitched his minor-suit losers on dummy’s high spades. E/W +980 and 11 IMPs to PAKISTAN, who won the match 31-27.

After the first of the three round robins, these are the standings in the Open event:

And, in the Women’s event:

We will be back in Lahore soon to bring you the best of the action from the next round of matches.