Bridge | 20 June 2020

I am so useless in defence it’s embarrassing. My partners all say the same thing: slow down and think. I say: ‘I don’t know what to think about.’ In the 2-card ending, I unerringly play the wrong card, which brings on the annoying response: ‘You knew Declarer had a heart and a spade left.’ Well, funnily enough, I didn’t know or I would have got it right. And don’t get me started on when to cover and when to duck. Which is why I make no apology for today’s hand, which features me getting a defence right. We have been playing the ALT invitational tournaments online since lockdown. Eight teams, all of which feature world-class players. First decision: do you bid over 1NT with West’s hand? I passed throughout, which turned out to be the winning move —and next time could be a disaster (see diagram).

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