Asian Games 2018: 10 things to know about Bridge

The eighteenth Asian Games proved to be record-breaking for India in multiple ways.

To begin with, the Indian contingent broke the record for the most number of medals won by India in a single tournament, when they crossed the sixty-five mark on Friday. The Indian contingent had previously reached their best-ever tally during the Guangzhou Asian Games 2010 when they had won sixty-five medals.

With one more day to go in the 2018 edition, India recorded its sixty-sixth medal on the board, thereby setting a new best.

On Day Fourteen, the Indian contingent also equalled their best-ever Gold medal haul. Fifteen Gold medals over fourteen days helped them level with their 1951 Asian Games performance.

The sport to fetch India's fifteenth Gold was Bridge. India's Pranab Bardhan and Shibhnath Sarkar finished in the first position.

Many were shocked to learn a card sport making its way on the roster of a multi-sport event. Despite that, Bridge proved to be very successful for India, with the squad getting three medals.

However, not many know or understand what this sport is or how it functions. Therefore, here are ten things you should know about the sport which brought India its fifteenth Gold medal.

Below are ten things you should know about Bridge:

1. First and foremost, Bridge is a sport that is played by four in pairs of two. Each pair sits across each other on a table, which means to their left and right is an opponent. Moreover, all fifty-two cards in a deck are dealt with, with thirteen going to each of the four players.

2. Each player then sorts his cards according to the suit and number. A trump suit is chosen, which de-facto becomes the highest suit. The rest follow. Needless to say, the trump suit beats all others.

3. To determine the trump, each player must bid with the cards they have. The highest bidder wins the 'contract' thus providing the sport with its official title -- Contract Bridge.

4. After winning the contract, the team must then state the number of 'tricks' they are going to win. In a trick, four cards are played and the highest card wins.

5. The team with the contract may announce that they will win ten out of thirteen tricks. As a result, their sole objective becomes to achieve that target. Meanwhile, the opposing team tries to steal the trick and stop them from achieving their pre-set target.

6. In the end, the final score is determined by allotting rewards/ penalties as per the tricks stated to the tricks actually won.

7. The four players are referred to in terms of directions -- North, South, East, West. Moreover, a huge vertical board in the centre of the table forbids a pair from communicating. As a result, the only communication that takes place is via the cards.

A vertical board stops a pair from communicating with each other.

8. The median age of the sportspersons competing in Bridge is Fifty!

9. Bridge made its multi-sport debut at this year's Asian Games. It proved to be very successful for India as they ended up winning three medals.

10. And finally, Bridge is the most popular card game in the world!