It isn’t easy to see how South can make four hearts after West starts out by leading the ace and another diamond. Declarer apparently must lose a spade, a heart, a diamond and a diamond ruff and go down one against best defense.

But the late Albert Dormer, British expert and one of the most prolific writers on all facets of the game, managed to make the contract after reaching four hearts on the bidding shown.

Moreover, he found the way to make 10 tricks in a rather simple fashion. He led the heart jack from dummy at trick three and, when East’s queen of hearts appeared, won with the ace. However, instead of continuing with a trump, which seemed the natural thing to do and would have been fatal, he first cashed the A-K of clubs and ruffed a club.

Dormer then led a trump to East’s king, and the remarkable effect of this sequence of plays was that East was on lead in a helpless position. If he returned a spade, declarer would finesse, losing to the king, but South’s only losers in that case would be a spade, a heart and a diamond.

If East returned a diamond instead of a spade, the outcome would be the same. After ruffing, West would find himself on lead, also in a no-win position. With only spades remaining in his hand, he would have had to return one, and Dormer would then lose only a diamond, a heart and a diamond ruff.

By playing three rounds of clubs before leading the second round of trump, declarer had left West with no safe exit card if he got the diamond ruff he was looking for.

Tomorrow: Brilliant defensive play.