Dubious Logic

Italy Win!

Well, it's coming home – to Italy. Ending "thirty years of hurt", the Italian team of Norberto Bocchi, Giorgio Duboin, Fulvio Fantoni, Lorenzo Lauria, Claudio Nunes, and Alfredo Versace defeated their old rivals, the Americans, Dick Freeman, Bob Hamman, Jeff Meckstroth, Nick Nickell, Eric Rodwell and Paul Soloway to win the Bermuda Bowl in a close and well played final in Estoril.

Last week I described the qualification; an all-play-all culminating in a cut of the top eight teams who then play knock-out. Unusual to bridge, some part of those matches impacts on the latter stage. Italy had already secured first place in the qualifying when faced the USA1 team but they had a nightmare and suffered a terrible defeat. The effect was that they started the 128 deal final 20 IMPs adrift. They gradually found their form; after losing the first three eighths they tied the fourth and won the rest, eating up the carry-over and running out victors by 18 IMPs.

Taking a lead into the final session, this time there was no miraculous rally for the Americans as there had been two years ago. That's not to say they didn't fight all the way and make life tough for the Europeans on every hand. Take a look at this from the Italian declarer's perspective:

You reach the excellent contract of 6♣ after you responded two clubs to you partner's one spade opening and he wouldn't hear of your attempts to sign-off. The lead is the ♦Q from the defender who made their only contribution to the auction, a double of 3♦. You win in hand and play a spade to the ten, king and ace. A trump comes back, collecting the knave from North. You ruff a spade (felling the knave), go to the ♥Q, and, fearing spades foul while trumps are 2-2, play another top club. North pitches a diamond, South having started with three. You ruff a spade (ten from North) with dummy's last trump and cash the top hearts, the knave falls from South. You are here:

If the lead was in East you'd draw the last trump and claim but you have to get there - ruff a heart or play a diamond?

For it to matter, South with the last trump must either be out of hearts (he started with a 4=3=3=3 shape) or diamonds (4=5=1=3). You won't let that heart knave sway you unduly – these guys are good remember. One clue is that the diamond discard from North would have to be from his shorter suit in a 3=5=4=1 if his partner held the former hand. Now that's tough, even at this level. Whatever weighting Nunes gave to the conflicting evidence he played a diamond and down he went when South had the second hand – that was a 16 IMP loss.

Despite that reverse the next three boards saw a gain for Italy and, this time, the blessing of two flat ones to finish with. Mind you, I expect they were glad not to have to wait too long to score up.

Published Saturday 12.Nov.2005