| 18th European Youth Team Championships | Page 2 | Bulletin 9 - Tuesday, 16 July 2002 |
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Juniors Round 14 - Israel v Czech Republic Both teams were near the middle of the rankings and in need of
a couple of good wins to move closer to the qualifying places for
next year's World Junior Championships. For a while, it appeared
that Israel might get the sort of big win they were looking for.
Israel picked up 14 IMPs when Hoffman/Lellouche outbid Vozabal/Pulkrab. If we assume that the first three bids are automatic, then the first decision is East's over 2ª. Facing a known six-card suit, I would prefer 3ª to 2NT ( though in a Mixed Pairs I am sure that any self-respecting woman would bid 2NT to try to play to her male partner's strengths, i.e. make him dummy). Certainly then the Israeli auction is the one I favour. However, even after East's 2NT rebid, was it automatic for West to raise to 3NT or might he have considered 4ª? His spade suit is likely to be the main source of tricks in 3NT, and if partner has no spade honour it will take a long time to establish. Meanwhile, the good intermediates make spades playable as a trump suit opposite almost any holding in partner's hand. Four Spades made exactly while 3NT was down three.
When Jan Martynek opened 1© Ron Hoffman decided that a 1NT overcall was the least bad option on the West cards. Petr Jelinek and Dror Lellouche each bid their long suits and Lellouche declared 2ª on the lead of the ace of hearts followed by a switch to the §10 for queen and ace. A club was returned to the king and Lellouche played ace and another spade. Martynek won and played a third club for Lellouche to ruff. Declarer, who had dropped the ©10 at trick one, now led the ©6 and ran it, then led his last heart. Martynek won and exited with a heart to dummy's jack. Lellouche played ace and another diamond to Martynek's king and had to make a spade in the ending for down two; -200. At the other table, Vozabal's 2¨ overcall showed five diamonds and four hearts - not a treatment that I have come across before. When Pulkrab introduced his spades, perhaps Vozabal expected a slightly better suit. Anyway, he raised to game and Eldad Ginossar doubled. Ginossar led a club and Ophir Reshef won the ace and switched to a heart. Ginossar played three rounds of hearts for Reshef to take a ruff. A switch back to clubs saw declarer win and play ace and another trump. This was getting very ugly for Pulkrab. In the ending, Ginossar found the unblock of the king of diamonds and the contract went down six! It does look as though declarer should have had five tricks because his third diamond can go on the fourth heart, but four is what he is credited with; -1700 and 17 IMPs to Israel.
Reshef's 1§ opening allowed his opponents into the auction and the Czechs competed to 3¨ over 2ª. Ginossar led the §10 which was allowed to hold the trick. He switched to the king of spades and in the fullness of time the defence came to two more clubs and a spade plus the ace of trumps for down one; -100. In the other room, Jelinek opened a 10-12 no trump and Martynek responded 3ª, pre-emptive. Hoffman doubled to show good values, and Lellouche left it in, judging that it would be easier to take five tricks on defence than to make ten as declarer. Right he was. Hoffman cashed the king of hearts and switched accurately to a low diamond. When he won the ace of trumps at trick three, he underled to Lellouche's ¨Q and a heart came back. Hoffman took two heart tricks then played his last heart and that allowed Lellouche to over-ruff dummy for down two; -300. A nice defence and worth 9 IMPs to Israel. At this stage Israel led by 51-14 IMPs and looked to be well on the way to collecting a maximum win. However, now the momentum in the match turned against them.
The auctions were identical up to the point where Ginossar went on to 3ª while Martynek did not. Three Clubs will only succeed if the defence leads hearts at a time when declarer still has useful discards and/or the trump finesse to take. Martynel led the king of spades and switched to the ace of diamonds. Not liking what he saw there, he reverted to spades, playing ace and another. Lellouche ruffed and played three rounds of clubs. He lost two trump tricks and was down one for -100. Four rounds of hearts for East to ruff, followed by two rounds of clubs, leaves declarer with a trump guess and, even if he gets it right, he can pitch one diamond on the fifth heart but where is the other diamond to go? Ginossar was two down for -500 and that was 12 IMPs to Czech Republic.
Ginossar passed and when Vozabal opened 1¨ Reshef had a normal 4ª overcall. Pulkrab doubled and that was that. The lead was the §K to dummy's ace and Reshef tried a heart to West's king. Back came a club and East continued the suit, West discarding. The defence had two trump tricks to come; down one for -200. Martynek's 2© opening showed 3-8 HCP with five hearts - a particularly tasty example of the bid, with such good holdings in two other suits. The bid kept West quiet, of course, and Jelinek made the practical response of 4ª, ending the auction. Lellouche led the king of clubs and Jelinek won the ace, Hoffman dropping the ten, and played back a club to East's six. Now Lellouche continued with the §Q and Hoffman thought that his ªQ was dropping under declarer's ace and king so he might as well try to promote a trump trick in partner's hand. He ruffed in with the ªQ and Jelinek over-ruffed and played the ªJ, which held, then another spade to the king. Lellouche returned another club and Jelinek ruffed then ran all the trumps. At the end, Hoffman was squeezed in the red suits to concede the overtrick; -650 and 13 IMPs to Czech Republic.
Eleven points facing an opening bid seems to indicate an invitational sequence and that is what Pulkrab followed. Vozabal was close to bidding game but finally passed 2NT, and Pulkrab played safe for eight tricks after a diamond lead had run round to his ten; +120. Lellouche took a more positive view of the East hand and drove to game. Jelinek led a low heart and Hoffman ran it to Martynek's king. Back came a heart to the queen and Hoffman led up to the §J, losing to the ace. Back came a third heart, Hoffman pitching a diamond while winning in dummy. Leading the ªQ meant that he soon had four spade tricks and nin ein all; +600 and 10 IMPs to Israel.
Would you respond with the South cards when partner opens 1ª? I suspect that I would not, but that I would come in later with a club bid - perhaps passing as did Ginossar but then bidding 3§ over the opposing 2¨ bid. Which means that there are at least three ways in which to deal with the South hand. Ginossar passed throughout and when the Czechs reached 4© Reshef doubled, ending the auction. Reshef led the ace of spades but, with South having no entry, there was no lead to beat the contract. Indeed, if North does not cash the spade at some point he will never get it, as there are two diamond discards for declarer's spade losers; +590. Martynek did respond to 1ª, his choice being 1NT, of course. When Hoffman/Lellouche reached 4© and Jelinek doubled, Martynek was perhaps concerned that his partner was expecting a little more from him in the way of defence and judged to bid 5§. That was doubled but there were just three diamonds and a club to lose; -300 but 7 IMPs to Czech Republic. Israel won by 61-59 IMPs but that converted into a 15-15 VP draw. |
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