WEEKEND MAGAZINE (July 17 2010): The opening lead in a game of bridge can sometimes make a big difference in the outcome of the contract. It can at times, either break or make the contract. Therefore, opening leads matter a great deal and should, therefore, be made with great alacrity and care. Most of the time, the opening lead is swayed by either the opponents bidding or the partner's bidding that comes betwixt.

Inferences from the opponents bidding marks them with strength and weakness overall and defines their weakest suit to attack to gain momentum for the defence. True, the judgements drawn in the making of the opening lead could go wrong still. But an alert defender, knowing his defence stratagem would make an opening lead that would be most unfavourable for the declarer. But for that he needs to listen to the bidding very carefully to make the right inference in the context of the contract bid. Therefore, it is said that opening leads are made with the best possible intentions but still blindly because the dummy comes down exposed only after the lead is made and the subsequent defensive plays become relatively easier looking at the dummy.

Let us put you to test today on the opening lead and see how you fare in finding the killing lead that can down south's contract of 4S as per the following hand held by you as west defending a contract of 4S on the following bidding made by north - south.



Your hand as west:

Pick your opening lead.Well let us now examine the possibilities of defence tricks based on the bidding. Before you make the opening lead, you need to visualise south's hand from the bidding made by him.

First of all the clear influence drawn is that south's hand is balanced and limited to at most 14 points with a possible 4 card heart as north south don't play opening 5 card majors, and north despite south's heart support of 3H bid, still opted for spade contract by bidding 3 spades.

The second inference that west can draw from the bidding is that north possesses a 3 card spade, which would make north's hand a 4-3-3-3 hand of 13-14 points. Let us now come to the south hand, where of course the clear inference from bidding 4S, is that south has 5 spades with 3 hearts for the support he showed in hearts. Of course the strength that south possesses knowing north's limitations should be roughly an almost opening hand to bid 4S.

Well, as west you must be getting rather bored by this anatomy of bidding inferences knowing that it requires nothing special for even a novice to know that holding 6 hearts and listening to NS bid of opening heart bid with a support for hearts made by south that east, your partner must the void in hearts, waiting for the opening ruff to get going. Good work, if you thought of it right so far. But I hope you did not fall in the quick trick trap without thinking of overall requirement of defence. For as you can see the full hands are as under:-

The defence strategy should always be geared with visualisation for acquiring enough tricks to down the declarer's contract. Is you opening heart lead geared to it? Let us see. East wins and plays back a club. Declarer wins, knocks your AS out and when you lead a diamond, knowing partner has no more trumps declarer goes up with the ace of diamonds, knocks the trumps out and discards a diamond on dummy's fourth heart to make his contract of 4S giving you a trump, a ruff and a diamond.

Can you see and spot the killing opening lead now? Yes, the JC, because you know you hold the trump ace and can, therefore, be in a position to give partner the timely ruff of the heart as an entry for a club ruff in your hand, which would be the downing trick. So remember, while making your opening leads, always try to look ahead to pick the killing lead.