China Long Zhu - France (Venice Cup Semifinal 5)

The One-Two Punch - by Phillip Alder

China started the fifth of six sessions down by 23.33 IMPs. But that changed in a hurry.

Board 1. Dealer North. None vul.
	♠ K 9 7 6 5 ♥ 2 ♦ Q 7 6 3 2 ♣ J 10
♠ J 10 8 ♥ A K 10 9 4 3 ♦ J 9 ♣ Q 9		♠ ♥ 6 5 ♦ A K 10 8 5 ♣ A K 7 5 4 2
	♠ A Q 4 3 2 ♥ Q J 8 7 ♦ 4 ♣ 8 6 3

(a) 5-plus spades and 4-plus in either minor

(a) 11-15 points, 6-plus clubs, or 5-plus clubs and a 4-card major
(b) Relay
(c) Maximum with 6 clubs and 4 diamonds
(d) A fifth diamond

In the Closed Room, six clubs was not hard to make. Wang Wenfei ruffed the spade-ace lead, took three rounds of trumps, crossed to the heart ace, and ran the diamond jack. Although the finesse won, she still had to lose a diamond trick.

In the Closed Room, maybe East should have overcalled four notrump to stress that her hand was all minors.

Six hearts can be made, but it takes great guesswork. Sylvia Willard (West) won the first trick with her club queen and ruffed a spade in the dummy. Then she tried to take both of dummy's top diamonds, but South ruffed the second and returned a club. West won in the dummy, ruffed a diamond, ruffed a spade, and threw a spade on the club king. But North ruffed, and South still had a trump trick to come: down two.

After the first two tricks, declarer had to call for dummy's remaining trump.

If South plays low, West must finesse her nine, draw two more rounds of trumps, and play on clubs. Or, if South splits her honors, declarer takes two rounds and turns to clubs. Suppose that South never ruffs, which is best defense. This position would be reached:

	♠ K 7 6 ♥ ♦ Q 7 6 ♣
♠ ♥ 10 9 4 3 ♦ J 9 ♣		♠ ♥ ♦ A K 10 8 5 ♣ 7
	♠ A Q 4 3 ♥ Q 8 ♦ ♣

Plus 920 and plus 100 gave China 14 IMPs.

And more was to come:

Board 2. Dealer East. North-South vul.
	♠ 9 8 3 ♥ A 7 ♦ 7 ♣ A K 9 6 5 3 2
♠ 10 6 5 4 2 ♥ J 10 4 3 ♦ A 10 ♣ 10 7		♠ A K ♥ 9 6 5 2 ♦ 9 5 4 3 2 ♣ Q 8
	♠ Q J 7 ♥ K Q 8 ♦ K Q J 8 6 ♣ J 4

(a) 14-16
(b) Transfer to clubs (two spades would have shown both minors)
(c) Splinter bid

(a) 15-17
(b) Transfer to clubs

When Sun Ming (North) splintered with four diamonds, South no doubt wanted to sign off in four notrump.

We can see how to beat five clubs by two tricks. West leads a spade. East cashes her honors, puts her partner on play with a diamond, and receives a spade ruff. But West understandably led the heart jack. Declarer won with dummy's ace, drew trumps, discarded dummy's diamond on the third heart, and led the diamond king. If West had played low, no doubt declarer would have ruffed in the dummy and played a spade. And when West did cover, East still got her two spade tricks.

At the other table, Liu Yi Qian (West), because her opponents had not control-bid spades, led that suit. She played her lowest remaining on the second round as a suit-preference signal for diamonds, and the contract went down two.

Plus 600 and plus 200 gave China 13 IMPs and the lead by 3.67 IMPs.

France then scored 9 IMPs to 1 over the next four deals to lead by 4.33. But...

Board 7. Dealer South. Both vul.
	♠ A K Q J 8 2 ♥ 4 ♦ A 8 5 2 ♣ K Q
♠ 10 7 4 ♥ 9 8 6 3 ♦ 6 4 ♣ 10 9 7 4		♠ 9 ♥ K 10 5 2 ♦ Q J 7 3 ♣ A J 6 2
	♠ 6 5 3 ♥ A Q J 7 ♦ K 10 9 ♣ 8 5 3

(a) 16-plus points
(b) 8-13 or 16-plus balanced
(c) Control-bids

(a) Either a strong hand with a long major or a balanced 22-23
(b) Control-bids
(c) Roman Key Card Blackwood
(d) One key card

Four spades was easy to bring home with an overtrick. The stakes were much higher in the other room.

Wang Wenfei (East) led a deceptive diamond jack, in principle denying the queen. Declarer won with dummy's king and started playing trumps to give this position:

	♠ 2 ♥ 4 ♦ A 8 5 ♣ K Q
♠ ♥ 9 8 6 ♦ ♣ 10 9 7 4		♠ ♥ K 10 5 ♦ Q 7 ♣ A J
	♠ ♥ A Q J ♦ 10 9 ♣ 8 5

The winning line is to cash the last trump, which squeezes East in three suits. She has to discard the club jack, but then declarer finesses in hearts and plays a club to East's ace.

In the above position, though, North led the club king. East defended perfectly, winning the trick and shifting to a heart. Still fooled about the diamonds, declarer put up dummy's ace and called for a diamond, losing a club and a diamond. But even finessing the heart jack would not have helped. North would still have lost the same tricks.

Plus 650 and plus 100 gave China 13 IMPs.

France regained 8 IMPs when Benedicte Cronier made a vulnerable four hearts while d'Ovidio was losing only 300 in two clubs doubled.

But then Wang Hongli made a vulnerable four spades with an overtrick. (It could have been defeated with a different lead.) When the game was missed at the other table, China gained 10 IMPs. And d'Ovidio went 500 in two clubs doubled to lose 9 IMPs.

The last sizable swing of the set came on this deal:

Board 15. Dealer South. North-South vul.
	♠ J 10 8 7 5 ♥ 10 9 7 4 2 ♦ 9 7 ♣ 5
♠ 4 3 ♥ J 6 ♦ K Q J 4 2 ♣ Q 9 3 2		♠ A 2 ♥ K 8 5 ♦ 10 8 6 3 ♣ K J 7 4
	♠ K Q 9 6 ♥ A Q 3 ♦ A 5 ♣ A 10 8 6

(a) 16-plus points
(b) Weak jump overcall

In the Open Room, after Sun's well-timed three-diamond cue-bid to show her major two-suiter, Wang was just about to bid four spades, which would have made easily, losing one spade, one heart and one diamond. But five diamonds doubled was more profitable.

North led her singleton club. South won with her ace and strangely returned the club ten, not the club six. So, North ruffed and shifted to a spade, which cost the second club ruff. But Willard still had to lose one spade, two hearts, one diamond, one club and one ruff for down four.

Wang Wenfei dropped one trick in two notrump, going down three, but plus 800 and minus 150 gave China another 12 IMPs.

China had won the session by 76 IMPs to 23 to take a 29.67-point lead into the last 16 boards.