Source:IBPAColumn Service JUN 2021Tim Bourke**Source: wikipedia:Tim Bourke “is an Australian bridge player and writer. His joint project with Justin Corfield “the Art of Declarer Play” won the International Bridge Press Book of the Year award in 2014.IMPs Dealer East. Both Vul
6 5 3
4 2
A Q 8 4 2
4 3 2
A K 10 4 2
A Q 3
J 10 9
A 7
West
North
East
South
1
1NT
2
Pass
3
Pass
4
Pass
Pass
Pass
West led the K.
East played the ten to encourage or show an even number of clubs headed by the ten-nine. Declarer decided to cater for trumps being four-one. If that were the case, he would have to play to retain trump control and to keep East off lead to avoid a heart switch through his ace-queen. So declarer ducked the king of clubs and won the club continuation with the ace.
If declarer played on diamonds immediately, with the view to leading a trump from dummy, he would have to run the jack of diamonds on the first round of the suit. If he instead played a diamond to the queen, West could block the suit by playing his king on the second round of diamonds. Further, playing two rounds of diamonds before playing a trump ran the risk of West playing a third diamond when gaining the lead.
Declarer’s counter to this problem was highly imaginative: he led the ten of trumps from hand. Declarer knew that, missing just 16 points, the odds were in his favour that, when West had four trumps, this play would prevent East from gaining the lead (Also, he knew that, if trumps were three-two, then almost any sequence of plays would do.) West took the ten of spades with the jack and continued with the jack of clubs. Declarer ruffed this and matched his inspired play of the ten on the first round of trumps by exiting with the four of trumps next.
West took this with the seven and now had no winning defence: a fourth club would be ruffed in dummy and a red suit would be just as futile. No matter what West did, declarer would eventually be in hand to draw West’s remaining trumps before playing the diamonds for five tricks.
If declarer had played in routine fashion, winning the second club, cashing the ace-king of trumps, then playing on diamonds, West would have ruffed the fourth round, leaving declarer a trick short of his contract.
The complete deal:
6 5 3
4 2
A Q 8 4 2
4 3 2
