| 38th World Team Championships | Page 3 | Bulletin 5 - Thursday 4 October 2007 |
| |
||
usa 2 v france - vc Round 9 by Brian Senior
Going into their ninth round match, USA 2 was lying second while France was still in the middle of the field. This match changed all that. It was a massacre, quite remarkable for a match between two such strong teams. France won by 95-18 IMPs, 25-0 VPs, and in the process moved up to joint seventh place while their opponents slipped to joint third, still handily placed but with a stack of teams coming up close behind.
The match started badly for the Americans when the respective East players were left to find a blind lead against 4♠. For France, Bénédicte Cronier led a safe trump. Hjordis Eythorsdottir (Disa) won and drew a second round of trumps, then ran the queen of clubs. Cronier won and switched to the ten of hearts. Sylvie Willard won two heart tricks and there was the ace of diamonds to come; down one for –50. For USA 2, Cheri Bjerkan led her fourth-best club. Catherine d’Ovidio won dummy’s queen, drew trumps in two rounds, and played a diamond to the king and ace. Bjerkan too switched to a heart but the damage had been done; +420 and 10 IMPs to France.
The swing was created by individual judgement, but the auction showcased an interesting French agreement which, I am told, came up for the first time on this deal. D’Ovidio’s 4♣ bid said that she wished to play game in the unbid major but from her partner’s hand. Danièle Gaviard simply blasted into the spade slam, hoping for a diamond control in partner’s hand, and Kerri Sanborn doubled, ending the auction. There was nothing to the play. Sanborn cashed the ace of diamonds then switched to a heart, but Gaviard could win, draw trumps and throw her heart loser on the king of clubs, then take two ruffs in hand; +1660. Disa just jumped to 4♠ with the North cards and Rozanne Pollack bid only 5♠ over Cronier’s 5♥. Willard went on to the six level, being careful to indicate a diamond lead in case her opponents took the push to 6♠. Disa doubled 6♦ and Pollack doubled Cronier’s correction to 6♥, ending the auction. Disa led the two of clubs to Pollack’s ace. She tried the ace of spades but Willard could ruff and play a heart, win the diamond return and draw a second round of trumps, then knock out the king of clubs; down two for -300 and 16 IMPs to France, who led by 26 after only two boards.
In 3NT, Bjerkan ducked two rounds of hearts, then won the third. Knowing that there could not be two cashing hearts on her right after South’s double, it was now safe to play a diamond to the jack. She cashed the ♦K, crossed to the ace of clubs and rattled off the diamonds, eventually taking the club finesse for her eleventh trick; +460. Six clubs is not that great a contract on a heart lead, but this was France’s day and everything was just as declarer would have wished. Willard won the heart lead and played a club to the jack, then cashed the king and ace of diamonds. When the queen fell, she played a club to the ten, then back to the ace, and claimed 13 tricks; +940 and 10 IMPs to France.
We do not have the bidding and play from the Open Room, but the contract was 2♠ doubled by North, down three for -500. Presumably East doubled a weak jump overcall and West left it in. There was no temptation for Willard to pass out a one-level negative double. Instead, she cuebid 2♠ to set up a game-force then supported Cronier’s clubs. Cronier took control, asking for key-cards, then suggesting seven. Willard was not able to bid seven herself, but when she showed the king of diamonds, Cronier was happy to bid it. Seven clubs is a decent contract, cold once trumps divide evenly. If clubs are three-one, declarer will need the hand with the long trumps also to have some red-suit length to permit a heart and a diamond to be ruffed in dummy. It was easy on the actual lie of the cards. Cronier won the spade lead, played ace then a low club to the queen, and claimed; +1440 and another 14 IMPs to France.
Sanborn opened a weak 2♠ and d’Ovidio overcalled 4♥. When Bjerkan’s 4♠ came around, d’Ovidio doubled to show her good all-round hand and Gaviard, with decent heart support in context, bid 5♥. Even 4♥ can be defeated by a spade lead and club switch, so the easy way to go plus would have been for Bjerkan to double. However, that was tough to do with a heart void and great potential to make 5♠, which was her chosen call. D’Ovidio led a top heart, ruffed. Sanborn led the ♠J to her ace, then the ♦2 to dummy’s queen. Gaviard won with the ♦K and returned a trump. D’Ovidio won with the ♠K, cashed two heart tricks, then switched to the king of clubs while the diamonds were still blocked to ensure a fifth defensive trick; down three for -150. Disa opened a strong club and Cronier showed both minors - she was borderline between this and 2NT, which would have shown slightly better suits in her style - but Willard’s spades were long enough to be worth showing and she did so. Disa rebid 4♥ and Cronier, who had huge spade support given her previous call, bid 4♠. There was less momentum in this auction and Pollack did not feel the need to get involved. Disa led the ace of hearts, ruffed. Willard found the interesting play of the queen of diamonds, attempting to create an entry to her hand. That lost to the king and back came a heart, again ruffed. Now Willard continued with her plan, leading a diamond to the jack, ruffed, and back came a third heart, ruffed with dummy’s last trump. She played the ace of diamonds, throwing a club as Disa ruffed with the ♠K, and that was that for the defence; ten tricks for +420 and 11 IMPs to France.
Perhaps seeking to create a swing, Sanborn opened a somewhat off-centre third-seat pre-empt, which bought the contract. D’Ovidio led the king of hearts to dummy’s ace. Sanborn led the king of spades, which d’Ovidio won. She returned the jack of clubs to declarer’s queen, and Sanborn cashed the ace of clubs before exiting with a diamond to South’s queen. Once Gaviard avoided returning a black card, Sanborn had to lose a second spade plus two trump tricks and was down one for -50. Pollack’s mini-no trump led to a very different auction in the other room. Willard overcalled 2♠, transfer to clubs. Three Hearts was forcing, so 3NT was the natural continuation and now, with a heart stack, Cronier started doubling. Four Hearts doubled was not a pleasant contract - unless you were a defender. Cronier led her singleton club to the queen and Willard returned a low club for her to ruff. Cronier switched to the king of spades, which Disa won. Declarer played the ♥Q, ducked, then the ♥K, which Cronier won. She played her remaining spade to Willard’s ten. Willard cashed the ♠Q and played a third spade, ruffed with the nine. Now Cronier erred by over-ruffing, the last trick for the defence. Had she discarded, she would have made both the jack and eight of hearts. The contract was still three down for -500 and 11 IMPs to France. France had played well and in luck, a potent combination. |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |
| Page 3 |
