Vugraph Deals #164

Marc Smith visits the European Championships 

Welcome to the beautiful, Atlantic Ocean island of Madeira and the opening of the COVID-delayed 55^th European Teams Championships. The format in the Open Teams is a 29-match full round robin of 16-board matches played over 11 days. The other three team events, Women, Mixed and Seniors, all of which have smaller fields, will be played over seven days and will begin later in the week. 

We open our coverage with a look at the Bermuda Bowl finalists, Netherlands, as they take on first perennial contenders Poland and then a potentially-dangerous Danish team.  

As usual, we start with some problems. Firstly, with just your side vulnerable, you are North holding: 

What do you bid now?  

Next, with both sides vulnerable, you hold as North: 

What action, if any, do you take? 

England cricket fans are used to their team starting overseas tours poorly. So often, they have arrived in Australia for an Ashes series with just a couple of practise matches under their belt, only to be blown away at the Gabba in the opening test match. Have either of the Bermuda Bowl finalists played any bridge since Salsomaggiore? The Swiss struggled to a 1-IMP loss against Hungary in their opening match here, whilst the Dutch came out of the traps like most of the greyhounds I have ever put money on … headless chickens, anyone? This early board did nothing to settle the nerves of either team’s supporters. 

Ricco van Prooijen’s 1♠ response was an artificial, game-forcing relay and Rafal Jagniewski doubled to show spades. Louk Verhees bid his diamonds and Wojciech Gawel upped the ante to the three-level. Still van Prooijen declined to introduce his six-card suit, choosing a forcing pass instead, although quite what he hoped that would achieve is unclear to this humble scribe. Verhees had little option other than a double, and now van Proijen bid his clubs.  

Do you think that South hand, with no key cards for its opening bid, is worth a 4♠ cue-bid? Verhees didn’t either, which left van Prooijen wondering whether he was facing the actual hand, which would produce twelve easy tricks, or something like xx/KQxxx/KQJx/QJ, with two top spade losers to be cashed. He passed and thus the good slam was missed: N/S +620. 

At the other table, in a similar situation, the Polish North faced the first of this week’s problem, 

Piotr Wiankowski was able to bid his clubs immediately. When he then rebid his suit at his second turn, though, he somewhat endplayed his partner. Should South raise clubs and commit to an eleven-trick game on this ace-less wonder, or probe at the three-level? Piotr Nawrocki chose the latter, advancing with 3♦. When Wiankowski was unable to bid 3NT, though, Nawrocki had no option but to support clubs. Perhaps there was some inference to be drawn from the fact that South had not jumped to 5♣, but what were the options for North now? Having forced club support out of partner, either 4♦ or 4♥ sounds like a belated offer to play in that suit. With the opponents silent, could Wiankowski be sure that his partner would hold only one spade? Surely 2-5-4-2 shape was still a possibility, so the good slam was missed here too: N/S +620 and flat board. 

The match finished with a deal on which the contract and the opening lead were the same at both tables. However, a less-challenging defence gave the Poles the chance to make a substantial gain.  

Just about any auction on this deal seems likely to end in the distinctly moderate 3NT. At both tables in our match, a Stayman auction left North on lead. Both declarer and dummy had shown a four-card major, so both North’s opened the ♦3, giving declarer a chance.  

In the Closed Room, Simon de Wijs won the diamond cheaply in his hand and played a spade to the king, which won. He then followed with a club to the nine and king. When Piotr Wiankowski then exited with a second round of spades, de Wijs had to make an immediate decision. Assuming that the club honours were split, scoring the ♠Q would give declarer nine tricks. De Wijs rose with the ♠Q and then had to watch Piotr Nawrocki cash four winners in the suit. E/W -100. 

In the replay, Gawel also won a cheap diamond trick and played a spade to the king, but Louk Verhees won with the ♠A to play a second diamond. Declarer was now in with a chance, by winning the diamond and immediately ducking a heart. Whatever the defenders do, declarer can then use his two major-suit entries to dummy to play clubs. Having scored two club tricks to go with two hearts and one spade, declarer throws North in with the fourth round of hearts and the enforced diamond return gives declarer his fourth trick in that suit, bringing his total to nine. 

When instead, declarer played a low club from his hand after winning the second diamond, giving the defenders two club tricks, he could no longer make the contract. E/W -100 and just another flat board. 

Perennial contenders, the Poles will be delighted to have opened their campaign with a 28-20 win against one of the strongest teams in the field. Other teams will not be so fortunate, as I suspect it will not be long before we see the Dutch Formula One squad firing on all cylinders rather than puttering around on something that sounds like a lawnmower. Indeed, the Dutch slipped into top gear to produce comfortable wins against Serbia and Hungary in their next matches to move into fourth place.

In Round 4, they came up against the Danes, who have been moving in the opposite direction, a narrow win over fellow Scandinavians Sweden were followed by losses to Estonia and Romania. Could they arrest the slide against the Bermuda Bowl finalists? 

The contract and the opening lead were the same in both rooms on our first deal. The Danish declarer found the excellent winning line of play initially, only to fall at a later hurdle. 

The Dutch began with a Precision-style 2♣ opening from North and quickly located their heart fit. 

Louk Verhees won the spade lead and immediately ruffed a spade in dummy. When he then led the ♥Q at trick three, Kasper Konow won with the ♥A and played a second round of hearts. Whatever he did now, declarer could not avoid losing a spade trick in addition to the ♦A and ♥J. N/S -50. 

Helped by the bidding, veteran international Lars Blakset found a better solution at the other table: 

Christian Lahrmann did not open the North hand, which worked out well as it meant that Blakset had learned more about the defenders’ hands by the time he had to plan the play. 

He also won the spade lead and ruffed a spade, but when he then continued with the LOW heart from dummy at trick three, East had no answer. Rising with the ace would allow the defence  to prevent declarer taking a second spade ruff, but also means that he has only one trump loser. So, Muller followed low and Blakset won with the ♥K. Had he then ruffed his low spade with the ♥Q, ruffed a club back to his hand, and played a trump, he would have made the contract. 

However, Blakset cashed the ♠K before taking his second spade ruff, which was to have fatal consequences in the end game. After taking his ruff with the ♥Q, declarer led the ♦K and Simon de Wijs correctly ducked his ace. If declarer now plays a second diamond, the defence can take a ruff with the ♥A and the ♠Q then promotes West’s ♥6 into the setting trick. So, Blakset ruffed a club to hand to play a trump, but East won with the ♥A and played the ♠Q, which forced declarer’s penultimate trump (note the difference if declarer still holds the ♠K at this point). When declarer then played a diamond, West won with the ace, drew declarer’s last trump with the ♥J, and cashed the ♣A for one down. N/S -50 and a flat board. 

The Dutch led 22-0 at the midway point, and the first deal of the second half provided plenty of excitement for the large crowd watching on BBO VuGraph. Both East players declared 2♠-X, and both were given a chance to make the contract.   

After identical auction, both South players correctly started with the ♦A. Neither, though, found the only winning continuation, a trump, both instead switching to a heart to queen and ace. There the lines of play diverged.  

For the Dutch, Muller thought for almost 15 minutes before risking an extra vulnerable, doubled undertrick in order to take his only chance to make the contract, a club to the queen. Then came the ♣ A pitching his heart loser. To make the contract, declarer must now ruff the third round of clubs, but Muller instead ruffed a heart and played a trump. This gave Blakset the chance to make the first of two excellent defensive plays, winning the ace and returning a trump into declarer’s tenace. When Muller now exited with a diamond, Blakset pitched his last club. Lahrmann won with the ♦Q and played a club through declarer and, when Muller ruffed high, Blakset found another superb (and essential) play by under-ruffing. Muller again exited with a diamond and, when Lahrmann won with the king and played another club through, declarer’s goose was finally cooked. Excellent defence to beat the contract by a trick: N/S +200.  

Unfortunately, in this game virtue must sometimes be its own reward. In the other room, declarer won the ♥A at trick two and played a trump, dummy’s king being allowed to win. When declarer then led a diamond, he was in serious trouble, North winning with the ♦Q as South pitched a club. Had North then cashed the ♦K to enable South to throw another club, the defenders would have been assured seven tricks, but North switched back to hearts. South won with the ♥K and switched to a club, but declarer rose with the ace, and once again he was two down. N/S +500 and 7 IMPs to NETHERLANDS despite the outstanding effort by the Danes in the other room. 

With just four boards remaining, the Dutch led 35-0 and the sea of orange in the crowd was already celebrating a comfortable victory that would keep them up with the pacemakers at the top of the leader-board. What they had not accounted for, though, was that they were playing against a Scandinavian variant of Real Madrid, a side renowned for scoring three goals in the last five minutes of a match. The Danish recovery was fuelled by an enterprising intervention by Kasper Konow. 

I have never been a fan of pre-empting when partner has opened the bidding. On this South hand, are you so afraid of the opponents finding their heart fit if you raise only to 2♠? Anyway, 3♠ the contract was, and the defence began with a diamond to the king and a club switch. East played three rounds of clubs, but declarer still had a further loser in each red suit, so that was one down. No big deal, I suppose: E/W +100. 

Making a takeout double on that East hand is not my style at all, but even 100-1 outsiders have won the Derby so there is always a chance that doing something off-centre will find the perfect layout to score a spectacular goal, and that was the case here. 

Verhees made the standard pre-emptive raise to the three-level and Michael Askgaard bid an innocent 4♥, as would we all opposite a partner who might have a real takeout double. Faced with the second of this week’s bidding problems, Ricco van Prooijen was not to know that he could collect an easy +500 by doubling, so he soldiered on with a two-way 4♠. West did know what to do, though, and he duly lowered the boom with a red card on the way out. 

Konow led the ♥A and switched accurately to a diamond. Askgaard won, cashed his second diamond winner, and switched to a club for his partner to take two winners in that suit. With five tricks already in the bag, the defence exited, but declarer still had to solve the trump position. Can you blame him for starting with a low trump from his hand, ten from East and the king from dummy, and then running the jack on the way back? The ♠Q was the sixth defensive trick: E/W +800 from nowhere DENMARK were on the board with 12 IMPs. 

Amazingly, this result seemed to kickstart the Danes and they gained another 20 IMPs over the final three deals. The result was, therefore, a Dutch victory, but only by a margin of 35-32. That dropped the Dutch to sixth place, but gone are the cobwebs of the opening match: they are in form now, and will surely be a force to be reckoned with when the pointy end of this tournament comes around. Meanwhile, the Danes had managed to get a match against one of the ‘big boys’ out of the way without slipping further behind the pack. 

We will be back in Madeira next week with more action from the 11-day tournament. 

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