Sunday afternoon, Round 2

The second match on VuGraph featured neighbouring Norway playing against the completely new Bulgarian team. None of the Bulgarian players who became such familiar guests in these Championships are playing, which made it difficult to predict the outcome of this match. Another factor to be taken into account when predicting about this match would be the absence of Geir Helgemo and Tor Helness, though the Norwegian team playing here is by no means short of international experience. The easiest of predictions came true very quickly: the VuGraph audience were to enjoy a good match, be it very, very slow. In fact, the first 8 boards took about an hour and a half…

As usual, boards 19 and 20 were shown first on Rama, but in this match, nothing very much happened on them. When Board One hit the wall, the fireworks were lit immediately.

Board 1. Dealer North. None Vul.
	ª A Q 8 7 5 3 © K Q 7 ¨ K § A K Q
ª 4 2 © A 9 8 3 ¨ Q 9 8 7 § J 10 8		ª K 10 © J 6 ¨ A J 10 6 3 2 § 7 5 4
	ª J 9 6 © 10 5 4 2 ¨ 5 4 § 9 6 3 2

Closed Room:
West	North	East	South
Aronov	Charlsen	Stefanov	Bentzen
	2ª	3¨	Pass
5¨	Dble	All Pass

Two Clubs was game forcing, so the Bulgarians decided to go all out to disturb their opponents’ auction. In a way, they managed this quite effectively but they had to pay the price for it. Down three, +500 to Norway.

Open Room:
West	North	East	South
Brogeland	Batov	Saelensminde	Dyakov
	1ª	2ª	Pass
3¨	Dble	Pass	3©
Pass	3ª	Pass	4ª
All Pass

A transfer jump and a little preemptive raise were not enough to terrify the Bulgarians. They duly reached their spade game and were allowed to play there. Well judged by the Norwegians, who lost just 450 in this room to go into the lead by 2-0.

On the very next board, Bulgaria suffered a heavier loss when their opponents outbid them at both tables:

Board 2. Dealer East. N/S Vul.
	ª K 7 5 © K J ¨ A K Q 6 5 2 § Q J
ª 10 4 © 10 7 6 3 ¨ J 10 8 7 4 § 8 6		ª J 9 8 2 © A 9 8 ¨ - § A K 10 5 4 2
	ª A Q 6 3 © Q 5 4 2 ¨ 9 3 § 9 7 3

Closed Room:
West	North	East	South
Aronov	Charlsen	Stefanov	Bentzen
		2ª	Pass
Pass	3NT	4ª	All Pass

As we all know, these protective 3NT-bids do not require a stopper in the opponent’s suit any more. Either partner will have it or offer the necessary help, or the suit will be blocked anyway. Well, had South’s ª9 been the ª10, this modern approach would have proved right once again. So East’s decision to believe his opponent and retreat to 4ª can be considered completely reasonable.

On the actual lay-out, East was wrong, as he had no trump loser after all. As the loss of two hearts and three spades was inevitable, Norway chalked up a nice +100 in the Closed Room.

Open Room:
West	North	East	South
Brogeland	Batov	Saelensminde	Dyakov
		1ª	Pass
1©	Dble	Redble	2ª
Pass	3¨	Pass	3NT
All Pass

The redouble was support, showing exactly three hearts.The quiet approach by the Norwegian EW worked out well. From the auction, South was not able to deduce what was exactly going on in the club suit, so he showed his heart stopper with 3NT over North’s cautious 3¨ without minding the suit opened on his right. Perfectly reasonable once again, but wrong: his ª9 should have been at least the ª10.

This time, the price to pay was four tricks. With a club stopper, there are ten tricks, without it the defenders could cash the first seven tricks on either a heart or a club lead. This proved as easy at the table as on paper, so another 300 to Norway for 9 more IMPs.

The score stood at 14-0 when Bulgaria struck their first blow, and a big one too:

Board 5. Dealer North. N/S Vul.
	ª A K J 10 2 © 9 6 4 ¨ A 5 § 9 6 3
ª 8 5 © J 10 3 2 ¨ K 9 § 10 8 7 5 4		ª 4 © A Q 8 ¨ Q J 8 7 4 2 § K Q J
	ª Q 9 7 6 3 © K 7 5 ¨ 10 6 3 § A 2

Closed Room:
West	North	East	South
Aronov	Charlsen	Stefanov	Bentzen
	1ª	2¨	4ª
All Pass

At this table, Norway overreached a little to a vulnerable game that stood no chance because of the duplication in hearts. Bulgaria +100

But in the Open Room:

Thomas Charlsen, Norway

Erik Saelensminde’s decision to double first would have been perfectly practical if he would have had the chance to double 2ª or 3ª later. After Dyakov’s nice bounce to game Brogeland’s view was obscured. A save looked a good proposition, with the spade game probably on, but finding the right denomination was not so easy now. Of course, 5¨ is the best spot though it still will go down three on a club ruff, but Brogeland groped his way to 5© on his rounded two-suiter. On a spade lead and continuation, dummy has to ruff and declarer may run into serious trouble, but in the end, he will land on his feet when trumps break 3-3 and restrict his losses to 500.

Anyway, +100 and +500 was worth 12 IMPs and thus almost erased the whole Bulgarian deficit. The match was fully open again.

Though both sides did well to beat a NT-game let through at a few tables, nothing very much happened between boards 6 and 9. But then:

Board 10. Dealer East. All Vul.
	ª A Q 8 6 © A K 9 8 7 2 ¨ 8 § 10 6
ª K 9 5 © 6 4 ¨ Q 6 § A K J 9 4 2		ª 7 © Q J 10 5 ¨ A J 10 7 4 § 7 5 3
	ª J 10 4 3 2 © 3 ¨ K 9 5 3 2 § Q 8

Closed Room:
West	North	East	South
Aronov	Charlsen	Stefanov	Bentzen
		Pass	Pass
1NT	2ª	2¨	3ª
Pass	4ª	All Pass

2ª of course showed majors.

How can you go down in 4ª? It looks as if you cannot lose more than two clubs and a diamond, as the hearts can be set up with two ruffs, drawing three rounds of trumps in the process. Well, this is true, as we shall see, but Aronov and Stefanov produced a brilliant defence to lead declarer astray. After cashing the three minor-suit winners, Julian Stefanov simply continued a club. Now what should declarer do?

If he ruffs in hand, he fatally shortens his trumps. He will not be able to draw three rounds of trumps and ruff two hearts later with only four trumps left. At the table, he ruffed the third round of hearts with his last trump, but when Aronov could overruff Bentzen was one down. Bulgaria +100.

If he ruffs in dummy, he will be short of entries to both ruff out the hearts and enjoy the established suit. ©A, heart ruff, ªJ, spade to the queen, heart ruff will not work as West will overruff. Drawing the last trump makes dummy entryless.

The hand caused quite a discussion in the VuGraph Theatre. All commentators were highly praising the defence, and rightly so, but only after the match was over Barry Rigal, our Chief Commentator, came up with the right solution.

Ruff in dummy, discarding your singleton HEART from hand. Now, you can start ruffing hearts immediately, the ªQ providing the entry for the second ruff in the suit and the ªA the entry to the established hearts as well as the necessary move to draw the last trump. A magical hand indeed!

Open Room:
West	North	East	South
Brogeland	Batov	Saelensminde	Dyakov
		Pass	Pass
1ª	1©	1NT	Pass
Pass	2©	Pass	Pass
3ª	All Pass

In the Open Room, they would not have anything of all this when Batov preferred a heart overcall. Thus, the spades were lost for Bulgaria and so was the board, in spite of the pretty defence found by their teammates. When NS did not cash all their tricks Brogeland even made an overtrick to gain 1 more IMP for Norway.

The board below created large swings all over the place:

Board 12. Dealer West. N/S Vul.
	ª A Q 10 7 3 © 3 ¨ K 5 § A Q 5 4 2
ª 2 © J 10 7 2 ¨ Q J 10 7 4 § J 9 6		ª 9 6 5 4 © 9 8 5 4 ¨ 9 8 3 § K 3
	ª K J 8 © A K Q 6 ¨ A 6 2 § 10 8 7

Closed Room:
West	North	East	South
Aronov	Charlsen	Stefanov	Bentzen
Pass	1ª	Pass	2©
Pass	3ª	Pass	3ª
Pass	4ª	Pass	4¨
Dble	4©	Pass	4NT
Pass	5ª	Pass	5NT
Pass	6¨	Pass	6ª
All Pass

Open Room:
West	North	East	South
Brogeland	Batov	Saelensminde	Dyakov
Pass	1ª	Pass	2©
Pass	3ª	Pass	3ª
Pass	4ª	Pass	4¨
Dble	4NT	Pass	5ª
Pss	5NT	Pass	6ª
All Pass

A very natural and nearly similar auction at both tables. In fact, bidding the slam was not the issue, as nearly all tables reached either 6ª or 6NT. Against proper defence, there is no legitimate endplay, though EW may well run into trouble on the run of the spades. In any case, West will have to keep all his three clubs. There are several ways to tackle the club suit. One might cash the ªA first and then lead up to the queen, one might as well use the 1087 in dummy to triple-finesse the KJ9 and thus decide to run the ª7. The latter play, executed on VuGraph by Dyakov, this time was the winning line. Very well done and 17 IMPs back to Bulgaria who all of a sudden were in the lead by 29-18.

They lost 6 and 5 on the next two boards, so with the scores about level the last board flashed onto the screen:

Board 18. Dealer East. N/S Vul.
	ª Q J 8 7 © Q 5 ¨ A 8 5 § K Q 8 2
ª A 10 5 4 3 2 © 10 6 4 ¨ - § A 5 4 3		ª 9 6 © A J 8 3 ¨ 6 3 § J 10 9 7 6
	ª K © K 9 7 2 ¨ K Q J 10 9 7 4 2 § -

Closed Room:
West	North	East	South
Aronov	Charlsen	Stefanov	Bentzen
		Pass	1¨
1ª	3NT	Pass	4¨
Pass	4NT	Pass	5¨
All Pass

Well done, par reached and an overtrick when the defenders tried to cash the ªA first. Norway +620.

Open Room:
West	North	East	South
Brogeland	Batov	Saelensminde	Dyakov
		Pass	1¨
1ª	Dble	Pass	2ª
Dble	3NT	Pass	4©
Pass	6ª	Pass	6¨
Dble	All Pass

On Rama, a clear Bulgarian misunderstanding was set to turn into a sensational swing in their favour. Batov’s double of course (?) promised hearts, so by bidding 2ª Dyakov was not only showing a strong hand, but he was suggesting heart support too, as he proved later by going from 3NT to 4©. This was not quite what Batov had intended, so he thought it was time for some more positive action now. Holding two aces, Brogeland duly doubled the final contract, but now he had to find a lead. The commentators were predicting a large swing to Bulgaria, as according to them the ªA (the ace of Brogeland’s shorter suit) would be his most logical choice, though this time it would result in 1540 to Bulgaria.

Under the eye of the TV camera, Boye Brogeland would have nothing of all this. With lightning speed he selected a red card, the ©4, as his opening lead, thus leaving all commentators speechless in admiration. Erik Saelensminde won the ace, not thinking about playing the ©J or that sort of thing, and quickly finished off the good work by returning the ª9.

So the last board of this long session quite unexpectedly took little time to produce a swing in the unexpected direction. The +100 to Norway at this table made it 12 IMPs for the board and gave them a 17-13 V.P. win, 43-32 in IMPs.