Today's deal is taken from an Olympic, an invitational tournament with prepared hands. The organization of these challenges, born in the 50s, continued even with the advent of computers. We remember the first modern edition in particular because it was won from our super champion Benito Garozzo in Geneva in 1990. By now the constant growth of technical knowledge and the disappearance of the main organizer of these events, the Swiss Bernasconi, have undermined their survival.
We are at the 35th episode of the column "Play with champions” for all the Bridge enthusiasts, fruit of the collaboration between FIRST online , Italian Bridge Game Federation. Every Saturday It will be an opportunity to compete with the highest level Bridge with the publication of a particularly interesting hand, which will be played at an international level or highly spectacular. Competitive bridge is fun for everyone. You can see the previous deals by clicking on the banner on the front page, or here.
Deal 35: How to Set Up Your Defense to Stop Declarer
Imagine yourself now in East defending against 3NT played by South, after your partner West has overbid two clubs in a major two-suiter on declarer's 1NT opening. The lead is J♥ to your Q♥ which remains to take. Many Easts at the Olympic of that time continued with the Q♣. To take with the K♣ declarer led spades until West raised with the A♠ and continued with the K♥. A diamond to the J♦ followed which of course the defense let pass and then the A♣, a fourth round of spades and more clubs wrapping East in the ending, forced to take the last two tricks to dummy's diamond fork. Now try to set up the counterplay differently. In your opinion, should this 3NT be done or not?

Solution to hand number 34 of Saturday 4th January
The twelfth trick could come from the impasse of the K♠ on East or, after another round of diamonds towards dummy, from a trick ending if the K♠ were in West. Unfortunately, we do not know who has the K♠! Let's try to cash in order: the J♥, the A♣, the K♥ and the Q♥, discarding the 2♠ and even the Q♠ from our hand! With seven cards, West must keep the three diamonds. Let's now cash the other three clubs. West must still be left with four cards with three diamonds and therefore only one spade. We will then have no choice but to cash the A♠ and table the J♦. West, forced to take, will have to play into our fork consisting of the K♦ of dummy and the 9♦ of the hand. Note that both the K♠ and the Q♠ are irrelevant cards for the purposes of the endgame.