Team Indian Railways re-established its dominant presence in Indian bridge circuit with yet another national title victory , at the 39th Summer Nationals Bridge Championships held near Ooty , Tamilnadu . The 6 member Railways team ( Manas Mukherjee , Subir Mujumdar , Amarnath Banerjee , Sumit Mukherjee , Gopinath Manna and Laltu ) beat West Bengal A in the finals by 19 imps , to lift the Khosla Trophy .

Indian Railways has been one of the most consistent bridge teams in India and there aren't many teams which fall in this category . Triple Ruia Gold Cup crown with a hat-trick , winners of selection trials just a few years back to represent Indian in bridge Olympiad , innumerable national finals and selection trials finals - all this recent track record speaks for itself . Its bench strength is able to carry the show well , despite things like Pritish Kushari's retirement from IR in 2006 or Rana Roy's absence at this Ooty summer event due to injury.

If one observes and analyses closely , the factors contributing to very consistent performance by Railway teams over the last decade or more , it can be attributed to a few key elements .

1. Desire to do well with all seriousness and repay their employers faith in the team and in the sport .

2. Preparation & practice : All Railway teams , A & B , regularly practice and do not rest on past laurels or experience to carry them through.

3. Internal competition and merit /performance based selection : The Railway B team grooms new recruits ; new talent gets exposure to competitive arena . Consistent performers get inducted in A team in due course .

4. Focused approach : Mostly, the players in railway teams conserve their energy well during tournaments . Usually , they do little table talk and try to keep high concentration levels . Hardly ever they indulge in one-upmanship or gimmicks and go about their task quietly .

5. Horses for Courses : The captain's authority is undisputed and he fields the pairs not by ' rotation policy ' but as per the form and the situation .

When these ingredients are added to basic talent as bridge players , it becomes a winning combination .It may not necessarily make any team invincible but surely it becomes quite difficult for others to beat them or match their consistency .

Well Done Indian Railways !