The most talked about subject in our school days was – Maths, right? Some of us dreaded it, failed in it, while some of us loved to study maths & excelled in it easily. It is said that Maths is a universal language, that you can describe everything in this universe in mathematics or their equations. So much, so that maths comes even into the game of rummy.

It is obvious because where there are numbers, there is mathematics. You can use it to your advantage, to make effective strategies and tactics to win the game. If you know the probability part of maths, you are already halfway there.

Probability

Let’s say you are playing a 13-card rummy game of points variant against more than 2 opponents. There are 2 decks of 52 cards each. This makes it 106 cards, which includes 2 printed jokers. Thoroughly know the usage and value of every card to make probability calculations easier. In all, there are 10 jokers, 8 wild card and 2 printed ones. With the number of joker cards you have got, you can guess how many of them could be with your opponents or in the closed deck.

Likewise, you can do this for any other numbered or face card. Besides that, if you’ve got more even numbered cards, you can assume that your opponents could have more odd numbered cards. If you have more red coloured cards, your opponents could have more black cards. All this knowledge will help you in finalizing which cards to discard and which ones to hold on to. Also keep an eye on the discard deck, both the closed and open ones. You can guess which cards your opponents have because of these, and also because of the cards they discard in Indian Rummy.

Connecting Cards

This concept will help you in discarding unwanted cards easily. Let’s say you have cards 4 & 5 of diamonds. This means you have more chances of forming a sequence with 3 & 6 of diamonds. But if you have a card of 2 and 8, it is just not possible to make any sequence with them, so you can discard one of these.

Points Calculation

While doing the above two types of activities, you should always keep an eye on the cards you have that still haven’t been formed into any sequence or set. This is because, at any moment, any opponent could declare, and you should be prepared to lose – but with the least number of points. Hence, after every move, you should calculate the points you could incur, so as to make a decision on which cards to discard. Usually, it is advised to discard high-value cards. But you can think otherwise if you can make sequences with them, as discussed in the above ‘Connecting Cards’ para.

It is always fun to play with numbers in this way, isn’t it? This probability mathematics makes rummy a fantastic brain-boosting and one of the most intriguing card games. Scenarios will keep on changing after every move on the table. You have to keep up with it and update your calculations, permutations & combinations to get the best out of every scenario, with the help of the good old & simple – Mathematics.