The Last Deal

by Christer Andersson

It is Sunday with a tight schedule in the Junior series, three matches to play. You have nearly completed a tough first match and the last board is put on the table. It is easy to be hasty and finish the match too quickly, introducing carelessness in bidding and play. Here are the final deals from the three matches last Sunday where the gladiators tried to fight to the bitter end. Round 7 in the match between Italy and France:

Board 20. Dealer West. All Vul.
	♠ J 9 8 4 ♥ 10 9 6 3 2 ♦ A 6 2 ♣ 2
♠ A Q 10 ♥ J 7 5 ♦ J 4 ♣ Q J 9 7 5		♠ K 7 6 3 2 ♥ 8 5 ♦ Q 8 7 3 ♣ K 6
	♠ 5 ♥ A K Q ♦ K 10 9 5 ♣ A 10 8 4 3

Adrien Vinay led the king of clubs and Sangiorgio considered his possibilities. With eight top tricks (requiring a kind trump break) he needed extra tricks in both minors. With good breaks in trumps as well as the minors, a dummy reversal combined with establishing a trick in diamonds might work. However, declarer felt the entries to the table were a bit short and contributed low cards on the first trick. West signalled with the jack, possibly indicating values in spades. Whatever the meaning of the signal, Vinay shifted to the two of spades, and Paul Seguineau won the ace. As West thought it would be strange for declarer not to take the ace of clubs on the first trick with only a singleton in hand, he switched back to clubs for his partner to ruff instead of forcing declarer to ruff spades with his trump honours. That turned out to be a costly mistake as the club seven was won cheaply by the eight in dummy and declarer discarded a diamond.

From here on, declarer can make his contract by cashing two trumps then playing ace, king and the ten of diamonds, discarding a spade from hand. If East wins the queen and gives West a diamond ruff, two spades can be discarded from hand and the fourth ruffed on the table. Not having accepted the possibility of the alternative line of cross-ruffing clubs and spades, and being afraid that the trump length and the diamond length were in the same hand, declarer instead cashed the tree top trumps. East discarded a spade. The ace of clubs and a club ruff followed. One spade was discarded from hand, and East discarded a spade and a diamond. Declarer cashed the last trump in the following situation:

	♠ J 9 ♥ 10 ♦ A 6 ♣ -
♠ Q 10 ♥ - ♦ J 4 ♣ Q		♠ K 7 ♥- ♦ Q 8 7 ♣ -
	♠ - ♥ - ♦ K 10 9 5 ♣ 10

East had to discard a spade, and made the mistake of keeping the king. When a diamond was discarded from the table, West was caught in a guard squeeze. He could not throw his club nor discard a diamond, as that would expose partner’s honour to a finesse after the ace was cashed, and he could not discard a spade as declarer then can establish a spade in hand. Had it not been one of the last cards in the match, I am sure East would have recovered and seen the necessity to get rid of the spade king.

This was the last deal in the match between Portugal and Greece in the afternoon round. Once again an impossible contract was reached:

Board 20. Dealer West. All Vul.
	♠ A J 8 ♥ 9 8 ♦ A K Q 6 4 ♣ J 7 2
♠ 7 ♥ Q J 10 7 ♦ 10 9 2 ♣ K Q 10 8 5		♠ K Q 9 5 ♥ 6 5 4 3 ♦ J 7 5 3 ♣ A
	♠ 10 6 4 3 2 ♥ A K 2 ♦ 6 ♣ 9 6 4 3

West	North	East	South
Kontomitros	Palma	Doxiadis	Barbosa
Pass	1♣*	Pass	1♥*
Pass	1♠*	Pass	2♠
Pass	4♠	All Pass

The Portuguese auction included a transfer sequence that took the pair to a very optimistic spade game. Believing from the bidding that the spades were unfavourably placed for the defence, East embarked on the traditional technique with a good trump holding, that is, he tried to establish his own side suit. But which one was it – diamonds or hearts? He took a shot in the dark and led the five of hearts.

Antonio Palma won the ace, as West encouraged, played a trump to the jack in hand and East won the queen. The heart continuation went to the king in dummy and now followed ace and a diamond ruff. Having survived thus far, another critical point had been reached. To make the contract from here on it is vital to ruff the last heart before the ace of trumps is cashed (exposing the bad trump split), and the diamonds are cashed. This would be the situation when the last diamond is played:

	♠ - ♥ - ♦ 6 ♣ J 7 2
♠- ♥ J ♦ - ♣ K Q 10		♠ K 9 ♥ 6 ♦ - ♣ A
	♠ 10 6 ♥ - ♦ - ♣ 9 6

Not losing concentration, Konstantinos Doxiodis ruffed low, ensuring that the contract went one down. Any other action in the end-game gives the contract to the declarer.

The evening match saw France take on Poland and the following was the grappa of this dinner:

Board 20. Dealer West. All Vul.
	♠ 9 8 ♥ K ♦ J 10 8 6 3 ♣ 10 8 7 5 3
♠ A 7 4 ♥ A Q 10 2 ♦ K Q 7 5 ♣ J 6		♠ Q 10 5 2 ♥ 9 8 7 3 ♦ A 2 ♣ A K 9
	♠ K J 6 3 ♥ J 6 5 4 ♦ 9 4 ♣ Q 4 2

West	North	East	South
Nawrocki	O. Bessis	Sikora	T. Bessis
1NT	Pass	2♣	Pass
2♥	Pass	4♥	All Pass

Olivier Bessis led the jack of diamonds, won in dummy. Declarer could count to six top winners in the side suits and had to arrange four tricks either from the trump suit or from the queen of spades. He could either take a double finesse in trumps or start with the trump ace and then play trumps up towards the queen. Although the percentage play is the double finesse, this time the second strategy catches the gold as the ace brings down a singelton honour from North.

In practice, Piotr Nawrocki played a heart to the ten and lost to the singleton king. The defence continued in diamonds. Declarer won the king, played a club to the ace and followed it up with the trump seven, which no one covered. When Olivier discarded a club, declarer followed up with a trump to the queen and tried to ruff a diamond. However, South could overruff and had the club queen left to kill declarer’s jack and force out the club king. Had declarer eliminated clubs before trying the diamond ruff, Thomas would have been endplayed. There were still possibilities to make the game but declarer played a spade to the ace and another up towards the queen, going one down.

All three deals illustrates that the match is not over until the last card of the last deal is played.