Pak team to miss Commonwealth Bridge Championship in India

Karachi: Pakistan team will not be able to participate in the Commonwealth Nations Bridge Championship in India as they have failed to get No Objection Certificates from the Pakistan Sports Board and Indian Foreign Ministry.

"It is disappointing as we have not been issued a NOC for the tournament by the Pakistan Sports Board or Indian Foreign Ministry," Pakistan Bridge Federation President Tariq Rasheed Khan said on Friday. He said the refusal for the NOCs was disappointing as they had applied for clearance a month back. The Commonwealth event is being held in the Indian capital from October 24 with teams from 21 countries taking part in it. "We were confident of putting up a good show in the championship as our players have got recent international exposure and have been doing well. We were very keen to take part in this mega-event," Rasheed said. Pakistan has a pretty decent record in bridge and has done well in international tournaments. The country has also produced some of the world`s top ranked players such as Zia Mehmood. All sports federations in Pakistan have to seek clearance and NOCs from the Pakistan Sports Board and Ministry of Sports before appearing in any international event in India. PTI