Suki: Scarpetta can’t take crown

THE WAY RONALD “SUKI” KING sees it, Sergio Scarpetta doesn’t stand a chance of  upending him as the world’s number one Go-As-You-Please (GAYP) draughts player.
King, Barbados’ undisputed No.1 draughts player and the world GAYP champion, has predicted that his  Italian opponent will not win a single game.
Speaking to NATIONSPORT in an interview about his upcoming title bout with Scarpetta, King revealed that he is 100 per cent confident that he will retain is crown.
It won’t be the first time that the two will meet for the GAYP  world title, after having locked horns at last year’s title match in Italy.
On that occasion, King defended his title after the 24-match series ended in a hard-fought 2-2 draw.
Scarpetta then earned another title shot after playing unbeaten to emphatically capture  the men’s division  of the just concluded Ronald “Suki” King International Checkers and Draughts Festival.
And despite a warning from fellow Barbadian, Jack Francis, who referred to Scarpetta as ‘a different kettle of fish from two years ago’, King says that he’s up for the challenge.
Computer expert
“Scarpetta is a computer expert.  He plays his strongest based on the play of computers . . . but there  is no computer that can beat me,” the former Three-move restriction champion maintained.
“He doesn’t stand a chance. He will not even win a game.
“I’ve been a champion for a long time and I have gotten this far because I don’t underestimate people, and I’m not about to start underestimating people now.”
King, who has held the GAYP title since 1991, when he defeated American Jim Morrison  4-1, guaranteed that he would be in tip-top shape for the contest.
He explained that having been busy the last couple months as he sought to get everything in place for the start of the Festival, he had not been able to practice much.
However, that won’t  be the case when 2014 opens up.
“I am the strongest draughts player in the world and I know my strengths.
“To be honest, I haven’t practiced in a very long time because I was so much better than everyone else, I usually just beat them off of talent,” King recalled.
“But this time I will be fully prepared. Draughts is changing now with the use of computers and I have to adapt and take my game to the next level, so that I can show people that I am still the best draughts player in the world.”