Team Pakistan gears up for WYSC 2014
Article by: Javeria Mirza
Qualifiers from the First Leg: From left top row, Hassan Bin Arshad, Abbas Shabbir, Arsalan Ahmed, Syed Mujtaba, Hassan Shehzad, Wali Muhammad Khubaib (Technical Director), Javeria Mirza (Tournament Director), Aamina Adil ,Nadia Aslam, Syeda Maryam Jalil
Bottom Row: Ali Rashid Khan, Usman Shehzad, Mustafa Aslam, Murtaza Aslam
A few months into their victory at the WYSC 2013, young Scrabble enthusiasts all over Pakistan were soon abuzz with a new fervor as the WYSC 2014 inched closer. Considering that within these enthusiasts there were beginner- as well as Master-level players, including former participants of WYSC, it was imperative that the Qualifying Rounds for the national team be categorized according to level of game based on experience. The PSA, therefore decided that the Qualifiers would be conducted in the form of two sub-rounds. Those allowed to participate in the first round were the top thirty players from the National Inter-School Championship (which excluded any Masters), held earlier in the spring of 2014. The second round was played by Master players and the top fourteen players from round one.
Featuring novice players as young as 11 years old, the first round of Qualifiers for the WYSC 2014 concluded on July 6th at the Beach Luxury Hotel. This nine match tournament exhibited a momentous escalation in the overall standard of youth Scrabble in Pakistan. Hassan Bin Arshad affirmed himself the top player as he triumphed the contest with an incredible eight wins and highest spread in the tournament of +818, while second place was taken by Ali Rashid with seven wins and a spread of +757, followed by Mustafa Aslam in third place with 7 wins and a spread of +674. Little 12 year old Mustafa demonstrated outstanding skill as he remained unbeaten for 7 consecutive matches, slipping only in the last two rounds to be overtaken by Hassan. The top fourteen players from this tournament went forward to play the second leg of the Qualifying Rounds scheduled for 11th, 12th and 13th of July 2014 among higher rated youth Master players. The rest of the top fourteen consisted of Arsalan Ahmed on 4th place, Abbas Shabbir on 5th, Aamina Adil 6th, Muhammad Usman 7th, Nadia Aslam 8th, Syeda Maryam Jalil 9th, Murtaza Aslam 10th, Mohammad Hassan 11th, Aleeza Ahmer 12th, Hiba Saad 13th and Simra Ahmer 14th.
The second and final round of Qualifiers was conducted from 11-13 July, also at the Beach Luxury Hotel. The tournament saw some major competition among the players as young Ahmed Abdullah who had flown in from Islamabad to attend the event battled against current World Youth Champion Moiz Baig in a remarkable playoff where the latter competently used his experience and skill to topple the former and clench the first position. Ahmed's efforts were highly commendable, as he proved that his absence from Karachi, and thus from most of the major Scrabbling activity, could not inhibit his outstanding determination. Third place was taken up with a great show of hard work and talent by Bisma Fatima, who will be participating in the WYSC for the first time this year. Further highlights include a brilliant wordplay by Hassan Hadi who amassed a behemoth score of 212 points on the word OBELIZED in a match against his twin brother Hammad Hadi. In the same game Hassan also bagged for himself the highest scoring win of the entire tournament as he had conjured an incredible 660 points by the end of the match. However, the limelight from the Hadi twins was successfully pilfered by the youngest player in the entire tournament, who happened to be their 9 year old brother Hasham Hadi. Hasham has qualified for the national team ahead of several older teenage competitors and confirmed himself a true champion in the making.
The top eleven players from this rigorous 27 match tournament now constitute the national team which will represent Pakistan in Colombo, Sri Lanka at the WYSC 2014 this August. The team includes: Moiz Baig, Ahmed Abdullah Abbasi, Bisma Fatima, Mariam Arif, Hammad Hadi, Hamza Sheikh, Hassan Hadi, Absar Mustajab, Hasham Hadi, Arsalan Ahmed and Arham Abidi.
These young whiz kids, who are the top youth players of Pakistan are now preparing hard for the upcoming WYSC to defend the prestigious title of World Youth Champions, and do their country proud once again.