MADEIRA
BRIDGE
Sporting talent
Andrew Robson
QUITE a number of top sportsmen are bridge players. Many cricketers including Mike Gatting and John Emburey know how to spend those long damp May days in the pavilion. From tennis, Martina Navratilova is a keen bridge player — as is Britain's best player of the late Seventies and early Eighties, Buster Mottram. Since his retirement from the professional tennis circuit, he has had more time for bridge. His talent for the game is in evidence on the following deal: Dealer South Both Vulnerable
The Bidding
South
West North
East
1+
Pass 1. Pass 24 Pass 24 Pass 2NT Pass 3NT All pass The ambitious 3NT contract was reached after South, Mottram, had scraped up a 14 opening (correctly, in my view). West led 48. Reading 118 to be from 'rubbish' (if West had IFQ, he would lead his 4th highest Mottram made the first key play: he rose with dummy's 'K. He could finesse against East's VQ later, but he needed to preserve both IP entries in his own hand in order to establish the 4s. He played a 4 to the ace and now made the second key play: he led a low 4 from his hand (not the jack or 10). West won the king and switched to a 4, but Mottram was in control: he won with dummy's *A, played a V to his jack and continued with 4J. East won 4Q and played a third V, but Mottram won and cashed 410 felling East's 9; +s were estab- lished and he had nine tricks: 14, 3,s, 14 and 44s. Note that if Mottram had followed with 4J or 10 after leading to his 4A, he would have lost three 4 tricks and been defeated.
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