Bridge | 25 January 2018

As Janet said last week, the recent European Open trials made for compulsive viewing. Ten pairs took part; first and second place would join Andrew Robson and Tony Forrester (the only pre-selected pair) to represent England in the European championships in June.
 
At the end of four gruelling days, the winners were Jeffrey Allerton/Chris Jagger, and Artur Malinowski/David Bakshi. They played brilliantly, but in all honesty, so did almost everyone. I was reminded time and again that at the top level, it’s not so much perfect technique that gives you the edge — every player is an expert — but bold and accurate bidding. It’s all about knowing when to be aggressive and when to go quietly; when to pressurise the opponents and when to play safe; when to double and when to sacrifice..
 
Take this hand. David Bakshi judged things perfectly and had the guts to back up his judgment; it’s not often that players sacrifice at the seven-level when vulnerable:
 
West (Espen Erichsen) opened a strong 2♣.