Test your Defense

by Alan Truscott

Test your defense By Alan Truscott You are East in the Vivendi Rosenblum qualifying, defending 6© on the following layout:

Dealer South. EW Game
	ª	10 8 7 5 2
	©	Q 9 8 7 3
	¨	9 5 4
	§	-
			ª	K 9 4
			©	A 2
			¨	Q 10 8 3
			§	Q 10 9 5

The ¨K is led, ruffed by South with the 10. When he leads the ©4, West produces the jack, and when dummy plays the queen you win with ace. What next? It seems safe to return a diamond, forcing another ruff. But the complete deal is this:

		ª	10 8 7 5 2
		©	Q 9 8 7 3
		¨	9 5 4
		§	-
ª	J			ª	K 9 4
©	J			©	A 2
¨	A K J 7 6 2			¨	Q 10 8 3
§	8 7 6 3 2			§	Q 10 9 5
		ª	A Q 6 3
		©	K 10 6 5 4
		¨	-
		§	A K J 4

After he is permitted two diamond ruffs, South can cross to dummy with a trump, ruff the last diamond, and play clubs. After cashing the ace and king, he ruffs a club and takes dummy's remaining two hearts. This squeezes East in the black suits.
But East can prevent the squeeze by returning a trump at the third trick, messing up the timing for the squeeze. Mike Lawrence, East for the Ross team, found the essential trump return for the right reason and earns a nomination for the best defence of the tournament.

*Results*	*Contents*
Rosenblum Cup KO McConnell Cup KO Open Pairs O1, O2 Ladies Pairs L1, L2 Senior Teams S9, S10, S11, S12 Continuous Pairs	Louis Vuitton McConnell Cup I Louis Vuitton McConnell Cup II Too Tired to Pass Test your Defence

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