Increase the chances

THAT was a lovely feeling to hear the first cuckoo call early morning the other day. They say spring only truly arrives when the first cuckoo call is heard. This call can be so loud and demanding too. 

South’s preempt was effective as the opponents can make 11 tricks in either minorsuit contract. Yet, it was too dangerous for either opponent to bid. Rather than pin all hopes on the position of ♦A with East, South should increase his chances by developing the spade suit. He should start by discarding a spade on West’s second high club. 

West would shift to a heart or a spade and South would win Ace. South now can ruff a spade back. A trump to dummy’s ♥J lets South ruff another spade to establish the suit, and the rest was easy. South would discard two diamonds on dummy’s good spades and the defense is limited to only three tricks. 

‘Sometimes giving someone a second chance is like giving them an extra bullet for their gun because they missed you the first time.

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Twitter ID  : @HemaDeora

No more goodies

BOMBAY Gymkhana is holding the 6th Shrikant Ruparel Memorial Pairs Bridge Tournament today. Shrikant was an ardent bridge player and a tall figure in the bridge world. His lovely wife Ira has been holding this tournament every year in her beloved husband’s fond memory. As usual, our dear Dr D Subbarao has risen with his helping hand. 

‘Apro’ Dara has sent this deal for all his bridge friends before he departs to Washington DC to collect some more juicy deals for us. 

West led ♦10. Assume South wins the second diamond as the bidding suggests that East has a six-card diamond suit. Driving out ♠A or taking the heart finesse, both are death wish plays. Why not try cashing five clubs forcing East to reduce to six cards? 

If East saves one spade, three hearts and two diamonds, South can drive out ♠A. East now won’t have enough diamond winners to hurt South. If East reduces to three diamonds, one spade and two hearts, ♥Q will drop. In short, East, with three goodies to hold, will be squeezed out of one of these goodies on the fifth club.

So, no more goodies.

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Twitter ID  : @HemaDeora

A fifty-fifty chance

ON Thursday, joyful and colourful festival of Holi will be celebrated in almost every part of the country. It’s the festival of colours and symbolises the triumph of good over the bad. 

West led ♦4. With three unavoidable losers in the black suits, declarer might take a fifty-fifty chance on a diamond finesse. 

The proper play should be that South wins dummy’s ♦A at trick one and leads a low club. East’s ♣10 wins and he would cash his ♦K before switching to spades. South should win ♠A, lead a club to ♣A and ruff a club high. A low trump should be led to dummy’s ♥9 and another club is ruffed high. Trumps are drawn, ending in dummy, and dummy’s fifth club provides the game-going trick. South loses only one spade, one diamond and one club. 

The world will not be destroyed by those who do evil but by those who watch them and do nothing.

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Twitter ID  : @HemaDeora

Further trap

SOUTH’S jump to 4♥promises a hand with distributional values and not necessarily an abundance of high cards. 

On the lead of ♠K, East plays ♠4, discouraging a spade continuation. West switches to ♣4, dummy plays ♣7, East ♣Q and South takes ♣A. If South draws one round of trumps, plays a ♣K, and ruffs a club low, East will overruff ♥7 with ♥Q and play his last trump. South will be left with a club loser. 

South will succeed if it plays no trumps at all before ruffing clubs, or if he plays to a high trump and leads a club towards his ♣K and takes his first club ruff with the other high trump. The second with that significant ♥7, South will lose a trick to ♥Q but makes the contract. 

There is one further trap to consider. If South crosses to the high heart and lead a club, East might ruff, put his partner in with a diamond and a third club will promote ♥Q. To avoid this trick, South should simply play a diamond. If East gets immediate club ruff, he ruffs a loser and declarer can then draw trumps and take the one club ruff that he would require. 

‘The greatest trap in our life is not success, popularity or power, but self-rejection.’

Blog          : http://www.hemadeora.blogspot.in

Twitter ID  : @HemaDeora

The right timing

MY friend on the 21st floor invited me to see how some trees are shedding their leaves and how some others are blossoming with flowers. He said you get a lovely view from the top and I could take some
nice photographs from my telescopic camera and join to play some rubber bridge.

East’s 1NT shows a hand that would open 1NT — about 15-17 high card points and a club stopper. The double by South is for penalty. North didn’t have much for defense so he pulled out to 3 clubs and now South bid 3NT. 

Timing can be critical when there are several fragile suit combinations and tricks to lose before you can establish the winners you require to make your contract. East is marked with almost all the  outstanding high cards. 

Kibitzing above the deal, I was rather impressed the way sitting South, a young pretty, witty dame, played this deal. She won  ♠A at trick one. Since East is marked with ♠K, she played a club towards  ♣Q. East could win  ♣K or duck and win a club later but it is too late for him to set up the heart tricks. 

If the young chick had made the reflex play at trick one by following a low spade from dummy, East would have won and switched to a heart and it would have been too late for pretty, witty South to set up her ninth trick.

‘Time is an illusion, timing is an art.’

Blog          : http://www.hemadeora.blogspot.in

Twitter ID  : @HemaDeora