Sought blessing from PT Usha before final play: Asian Games bridge gold winner Shibnath De

Briefing media persons  about his experience at the games village for being a non-descriptive player as very few have idea about the  game of bridge even among the Indian contingent, Sarkar said he used to meet PT Usha almost every day and before final match he had sought her blessings and had taken a selfie to boost up his mental strength.

When Usha queried “why do you need my blessing”  Sarkar replied that he was one of the aspirants for gold medal and was going to play the final in the pairs event.

Sarkar pairing with Pranab Bardhan earned India the 15th and final gold medal in the Asian Games by beating strongest rivals China in the title clash.

India also bagged two bronze medals in men's team and mixed team championship as the 30-member bridge squad helped Indian contingent win largest ever tally of 69 medals.

Ironically, the bridge squad which had been approved by the IOA just three days before departure had not got blazers in the kit.

Two other bronze medal winners Sumit Mukherjee and Debobrata Mazumdar, who were also at the meet the press organized by  Calcutta Sports Journalists’ Club at their tent, said they have been invited by the Prime Minister’s office to attend an official dinner on Tuesday. 

But they did not get official Asian Games blazers to wear at the Prime Minister’s function in New Delhi. The bridge team got the clearance to participate at the Asian Games just three days before the meet. It is customary for the sportspersons to wear official blazer while attending Prime Minister’s function.  

(Reporting by Manik Banerjee)