WHO SHOULD NOT GET ON LEAD?

John Maynard Keynes said, “The avoidance of taxes is the only intellectual pursuit that still carries any reward.” Do you agree?

In bridge, one of the more difficult concepts is avoidance play. This occurs when (usually) declarer has to work to keep one particular defender off the lead. In this deal, South is in three no-trump. West leads a fourth-highest heart five: seven, queen, king. How should declarer continue?

South starts with seven top tricks: three spades, one heart (the first trick), two diamonds and one club. He can get the extra winners he needs from diamonds, and can afford to lose one trick in that suit as long as the defenders cannot then cash enough heart tricks to defeat the contract.

Next, who has what in hearts?

East was playing third hand high, so West is marked with the heart ace. Who, therefore, is the danger hand?

It is East. If he gets on lead, he can push a heart through declarer’s jack. So, South must play to ensure that East never wins a trick. Declarer plays a diamond to dummy’s king, then returns a diamond to his jack. Here, the finesse wins, and he has 10 tricks. But even if West could produce the diamond queen, the worst he could do would be to shift to clubs. But South could win with dummy’s ace and take nine tricks.

Might declarer have ducked the first trick?

If the defenders are clever, not on this deal. East will return the heart six (high from a remaining doubleton), and West will let South take the trick. Then declarer must find the diamond queen to succeed. Why guess, when the contract is assured?