ISLAMABAD, May 17: Superstar Zia Mahmood's participation has revived up fever for this month's Pakistan Open Bridge Championship due to be held at the Islamabad Club.

Zia is to team up with Tariq Aziz, Javed Khalid, Saeed Akhtar, Tahir Masood and Javed Miran to make Tariq Aces.

Having strong credentials, the squad is hot favourite to win the May 26-28 championship.

Arguably the most recognised and charismatic bridge player, Zia plays for the United States in international competition after taking Pakistan to glory in its years of bridge infancy.

With Zia as the team's star, a largely unknown and unheralded squad from Pakistan scaled incredible heights by taking runners-up position in the 1981 Bermuda Bowl World Bridge Championships in New York.

Zia was back in the US representing Pakistan and again making it to the final of a major world championship - the Rosenblum Cup in Miami in 1986. He also led Pakistan to five consecutive Bridge Federation Asia Middle East Bridge (BEFAME) titles in the 1980s.

"The time may come when I return home and lead Pakistan into the World Championships again," Zia said before his first appearance for the US at the 1997 World team Championships in Tunisia.

Tariq Aziz and Javed Khalid topped the Pakistan and Asia/Middle East (Zone 4) segments of the 2004 and 2005 Worldwide Bridge Contest. The pair, 8th in the overall worldwide ranking list of 2005, were awarded distinction by the World Bridge Federation (WBF).

Javed has represented Pakistan at the World Team Olympiad in Maastricht, Netherlands in 2002.

Saeed Akhtar who will pair up with him, has long led Pindi Force to fame on the national circuit.

Tahir Masood represented Pakistan at the World Team Championships at Yokohama, Japan in 1991 while Javed Miran featured in the World Team Olympiad at Salsomaggiore in 1992.

With Tariq Aces being so strong, others will need to muster up bridge acumen to challenge them. Among the frontrunners, national champions Candyland will have to bring in all resolve to shrug off a dismal performance at the 2005 BEFAME Championship, and have a crack at the title.

Candyland will field Mohammad Ismail, Ziaullah Baig, Hamid Mohyuddin, Khalid Mohyuddin, Mubashar Puri and Hasan Askari.

On the other hand Data Steel comprising Tariq Rasheed, Shauq Hussain, Rashedul Ghazi, Parvez Mirza, Kamran Ibrahim and Imran Jhaka is a team rich in experience and a force to reckon with.

Shauq played in the 2000 Maastricht World Team Olympiad while Rashed and Pervez who held the national title for over a decade have plenty of international exposure.

Aces of Lahore with Izzat Khalil, Shoaib Bohhari, Ghias Malik and Ihsan Qadir will need to realign strategy and overcome lapses that occurred at the 2006 Balijee International Bridge Tournament at Lahore.

They led the field in 11 out of 12 sessions but fell in the final round for India's Formidable to walk away with the title.

The spotlight will however fall on Zia who says "I am proud to play for America bit I am still a Pakistani."