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      A “Cross” Ruffer!

A look today at playing a hand where you seem to have very few losers but on the other hand, not that many winners. The answer in many such cases is to make good use of the asset you do have, the trump suit.

South did overbid their hand a little in the early stages (that 3 bid) but North steered the partnership to a very sound contract. Well, it should be sound. West leads 5 which you cover with 7 and ruff East’s 9. Plan the play and decide what to lead at trick 2.

With voids in each other’s major suit, no-trumps is not an ideal place to be. 3NT could come to 9 tricks on the above deal but 11 tricks in clubs should be easier.

However, our declarer failed to make 11 tricks. They were a little unlucky in that both major suits broke badly but they rather ignored the basic principles of crossruffing.

What happened?

At trick 2, declarer played a trump to East’s ace with East returning a trump (they broke 2-2). Declarer won in hand to take a losing diamond finesse. East returned another diamond and South could discard two spades on high diamonds before ruffing a heart, cashing A and ruffing a spade. These cards remained with South needing all three tricks:

A heart ruff was followed by a spade ruff but trick 13 went to East’s A: one down.

The cross-ruff rules.

• Count your tricks, especially your side-suit tricks.
• Unless you are loaded with trumps, leave the opposition’s trumps outstanding.
• Cash those side-suit winners and then
• Embark on your cross-ruff.

There were three side suit winners, A and AK. Therefore, South needed to score 8 trump tricks to make their contract.

These were the four hands.

 

So, ruff the heart, play A and ruff a spade and play AK. Ruff a second heart and a second spade. East may overruff with A and play a second trump which is potentially awkward for declarer who can win in dummy and ruff a low diamond. The Q appears and after another spade ruff, declarer can play J on which East has to discard. Thus, the spade ruff which East denied declarer by drawing a second trump is recovered by the discard on J.

Three spades are ruffed and one is discarded. Having taken 10 tricks, declarer leads a heart off dummy and ruffs with K with West having to throw K to make 5 for the second defensive trick at trick 13.

If East did not overruff, they could prevent the discard on the J by ruffing with 7 but South can make 4 trumps in dummy and 4 in their hand along with those three side-suit tricks to make their contract.

In theory, taking the losing diamond finesse was not critical but along with the bad spade break it was. Drawing trumps and taking the diamond finesse were not approaches South should have taken. Remember the basic cross-ruffing rules and you should be safe most of the time, and not "cross" at the end of the board. 

REDS and BLACKS

 

1 is 4+ clubs and 2NT is Michaels style, 10+hcp with the red suits. What’s your fancy?

Richard Solomon

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