Source:
NEWS FROM THE BRIDGE ROOM IN POREC, CROATIA
Director’s report by Andrew Kambites
![](http://youth.worldbridge.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Kambites-H1.png)
1NT: Weak (< or = 14)
This hand occurred in the championship pairs qualifying round. I would expect the above auction to be widely followed, though I would give some consideration to passing 1NT with the South hand. The point is that North/South have a maximum of 25 points, and game is unlikely to be better than borderline, even if opener is maximum. One of the themes of the Porec holiday has been the special criteria that should govern your bidding at duplicate pairs. Unlike vulnerable at teams, it doesn’t pay in the long run to bid thin games at pairs. However there are three things that would sway me to investigate game with the South hand. First the shape of 4-4-3-2 is far better than 4-3-3-3 because you have two suits that you might develop for length tricks. Second, while there are no tens the three nines look very useful. In particular the black nines in suits you are likely to want to develop look very useful. Third, there are no unsupported queens or jacks.
However the real point of this hand concerns how the play might develop after the various possible opening leads. So what would you lead as East? If the bidding had been straight 1NT-3NT a fourth best heart lead would be obvious, but the above auction has told East that declarer has four hearts. It is usually a bad idea to lead from a broken suit in your opponents’ suit, however you have five good hearts and almost any heart honour in partner’s hand would leave you with very powerful hearts sitting over declarer’s suit.
What are the alternatives? The bidding indicates that North/South have nothing much to spare for their contract so how about a passive lead? Maybe the
![Diamond Suit](http://youth.worldbridge.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/d.gif)
8 or
![club suit](http://youth.worldbridge.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/c.gif)
7 (MUD). In fact neither of these leads turns out to be as passive as you might think!
Declarer seems to have 8 obvious tricks: 2 spades (I told you the
![Spade Suit](http://youth.worldbridge.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/s.gif)
9 was likely to be useful), one heart, 3 diamonds and the
![club suit](http://youth.worldbridge.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/c.gif)
A K. He will need to play on spades but he will still require to find a ninth trick.
Suppose East leads the
![club suit](http://youth.worldbridge.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/c.gif)
7. Dummy plays the
![club suit](http://youth.worldbridge.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/c.gif)
9 and suddenly declarer has four club tricks. If declarer played clubs himself he would undoubtedly finesse dummy’s
![club suit](http://youth.worldbridge.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/c.gif)
J, losing to West’s
![club suit](http://youth.worldbridge.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/c.gif)
Q. Leading away from tens is not necessarily passive.
Alternatively East might lead the
![Diamond Suit](http://youth.worldbridge.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/d.gif)
8. Dummy covers with the
![Diamond Suit](http://youth.worldbridge.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/d.gif)
9. Normal practice is that West should play the lower of touching honours, the
![Diamond Suit](http://youth.worldbridge.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/d.gif)
10. However here declarer wins the
![Diamond Suit](http://youth.worldbridge.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/d.gif)
A and can later finesse his
![Diamond Suit](http://youth.worldbridge.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/d.gif)
7, knowing that West must have the
![Diamond Suit](http://youth.worldbridge.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/d.gif)
J. West can do better than this. The
![Diamond Suit](http://youth.worldbridge.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/d.gif)
8 cannot be a fourth highest (only the
![Diamond Suit](http://youth.worldbridge.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/d.gif)
A and
![Diamond Suit](http://youth.worldbridge.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/d.gif)
Q are missing) and if their methods are to lead MUD (Middle/UP/Down) from three small it cannot be a MUD lead either because he can see the
![Diamond Suit](http://youth.worldbridge.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/d.gif)
9 and
![Diamond Suit](http://youth.worldbridge.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/d.gif)
10. Therefore it must be top of a doubleton. West cannot conceal from declarer who has the
![Diamond Suit](http://youth.worldbridge.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/d.gif)
J because there is no holding that East could have with the
![Diamond Suit](http://youth.worldbridge.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/d.gif)
J that would result in the
![Diamond Suit](http://youth.worldbridge.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/d.gif)
8 being led, but he can muddy the waters by concealing the
![Diamond Suit](http://youth.worldbridge.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/d.gif)
0. West should play the
![Diamond Suit](http://youth.worldbridge.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/d.gif)
J rather than the
![Diamond Suit](http://youth.worldbridge.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/d.gif)
10 at trick 1! After either of these leads the defenders cannot recover if declarer reads the hand correctly. Even if West gains the lead with the
![Spade Suit](http://youth.worldbridge.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/s.gif)
A and switches to the
♥10 declarer covers with the
![Heart Suit](http://youth.worldbridge.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/h.gif)
K. East wins the
![Heart Suit](http://youth.worldbridge.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/h.gif)
A and returns a low heart but declarer allows West’s
![Heart Suit](http://youth.worldbridge.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/h.gif)
8 to win. Declarer’s
![Heart Suit](http://youth.worldbridge.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/h.gif)
7 is just high enough to prevent the defenders taking three heart tricks.
How about a heart lead? East leads the
![Heart Suit](http://youth.worldbridge.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/h.gif)
6 to West’s
![Heart Suit](http://youth.worldbridge.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/h.gif)
10 and declarer’s
![Heart Suit](http://youth.worldbridge.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/h.gif)
K. Declarer leads a spade, taken by West’s
![Spade Suit](http://youth.worldbridge.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/s.gif)
A. West continues with the
♥8. Declarer doesn’t cover with the
![Heart Suit](http://youth.worldbridge.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/h.gif)
Q but East knows that North has no more hearts left because of his 2
![Heart Suit](http://youth.worldbridge.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/h.gif)
reply to Stayman. East overtakes the
![Heart Suit](http://youth.worldbridge.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/h.gif)
8 with his
![Heart Suit](http://youth.worldbridge.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/h.gif)
9 and with the
![Spade Suit](http://youth.worldbridge.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/s.gif)
K as an entry he continues with the
![Heart Suit](http://youth.worldbridge.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/h.gif)
A and
![Heart Suit](http://youth.worldbridge.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/h.gif)
J, setting up a third heart trick which he cashes when he regains the lead with the
![Spade Suit](http://youth.worldbridge.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/s.gif)
K. Three heart tricks and the
![Spade Suit](http://youth.worldbridge.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/s.gif)
A K beat 3NT.
Both sides need to carefully watch the small cards here: an exercise in concentration and attention to detail.