RI set to cruise into Bermuda Bowl quarters

JAKARTA (JP): Indonesia's chances of getting into the quarterfinals of the Bermuda Bowl men's team bridge world championships in Beijing are greater now despite its mixed results on Thursday.

Indonesia routed Venezuela 21-9, fell 14-16 to Australia and bounced back to upset favorite champion USA-1 18-12 in the 12th round on Thursday.

"The wins expand Indonesia's chances of reaching the quarterfinals," Amran Zamzami, executive director of the Indonesian Bridge Association (Gabsi), commented in Beijing.

As of Thursday, Indonesia had recorded seven wins and five losses. Whether or not Indonesia will advance into the quarterfinals will depend on the results of its two matches against Argentina and South Africa, scheduled for late yesterday.

Some Indonesian observers said that tying with the two would be enough to guarantee Indonesia a quarterfinal berth, thanks to its wide point margin.

Indonesia's victory over USA-1 seems attributable to a reshuffle of its pairs after it fell 7-23 to the strong American team on the first board.

It seemed that the replacement of Danny Sakul and Franky Karwur by Sance Panelewen and Giovani Watulingas disturbed the solidity of USA-1.

As a result, Indonesia's number one pair of Hengky Lasut and Eddy Manoppo, who took on Robert Goldman and Paul Soloway, and Sance and Giovani, who challenged James Cayne and Chuck Buroer, could advance on the next 13 boards without much difficulty.

Twenty countries are taking part in the Bermuda Bowl championship, which started on Oct. 9 and is slated to end on Oct. 20. A total of 16 participating teams are split into two groups, Group West and Group East, which play round-robin matches.

Teams which finish among the top four in their respective groups will reach the quarterfinals, which apply a knock-out system, today and tomorrow. (arf)