Anshul Bhatt — the bright star of Indian bridge Premium
The Hindu
At just 10, Anshul Bhatt is already making waves in the game of bridge, winning three gold medals in the World Youth Championship and impressing the likes of Viswanathan Anand, Giannarigo Rona, Martin Seligman and Bill Gates. He has been selected as the “Personality of the Year” in 2022, and is doing his bit to help the game grow by conducting “boot camps” and introducing the game to the youth. Anshul is determined to make bridge as popular as chess and is inspiring others to take up the game.
The game of bridge is mostly associated with grey hair, as it is more a cerebral game like chess. Just the way a bunch of young players are projecting India as a super power in chess, there is a boy who promises to set a trend in motion and do what Viswanathan Anand did to Indian chess, providing a brilliant identity.
Anshul Bhatt may be taking the baby steps in the game, but he has already won three gold medals in the World Youth Championship last year in Italy.
The president of the World Bridge Federation (WBF), Giannarigo Rona, was quite impressed with Anshul’s performance and said, “His gold medal and championship win have the potential to do to the game what Viswanathan Anand’s early success did to chess.”
Martin Seligman, a renowned bridge player and professor at University of Pennsylvania was equally impressed by Anshul.
“There is a new star rising in India. I am particularly thrilled by Anshul Bhatt’s triple gold, in pairs, teams and across all the formats. This seals India’s position in the world of youth bridge. I am very impressed with Anshul’s determination and endurance to play for eight hours a day for seven days in a row,” said Seligman.
In the 20th edition of the HCL International Bridge in Delhi, the tenth standard student of Dhirubhai Ambani school in Mumbai, Anshul helped his team Maverick Prodigies to the pre-quarterfinals in the Team of Four Gold event. That event alone carried a total prize of Rs.1.24 crore, from an overall purse of Rs.2.6 crore, which makes it the richest bridge tournament in the world.
Interestingly, a bunch of youngsters from Poland, in their 20s, clinched the title, beating the Formidables team of Kiran Nadar and company, giving a hint that being young need not be a handicap in the game. Not any more.