BRIDGE

Disclaimer: while no great fan of ballet, I can and do appreciate the elegant pas de deux of an expert partnership cooperating in executing a difficult defense.

Witness the contrast in “dance partnerships” defending today’s deal in a recent online team match.

Against identical auctions, both West’s kicked off with the spade ten:king,seven and three at one table. The rest was mere mopping up as South was in charge; he continued with a low diamond from dummy to his nine and West did the best he could by retaining his ace but to no avail.

Declarer played a second diamond round to East who won the King to play back the Queen and Jack of spades, both ducked by declarer.

Downhill from there as South had the timing advantage to force out the last high diamond and claim nine tricks for the loss of two tricks in each of diamonds and spades.

Not so easy for South at the other table where a forward-looking East contributed the spade Queen under the dummy’s trick-one play of the King.

And on the next play of a low diamond from dummy, East eschewed “Second Hand Low” in favour of jumping right in with the King: if South held the diamond ace, East knew his King was trapped in any case while preserving that ace in West’s hand for a later entry could be critical.

And was as East fired back the spade Jack, holding, followed by the seven for West to overtake and force out South’s spade ace while the diamond ace remained as an entry.

Insert applause for the second pair of defenders here!