Q653
76
K7
AQJ72

AKJ94
A2
J8
K984

The contract is 6; the opening lead is the K. Your partner opened 1, you responded 1, and Lefty overcalled 2. That means you can count on the A being onside.

So the hand would be a piece of cake -- draw trumps, pitch a heart on the long club, take the diamond finesse -- except that Lefty shows out on the first round of trumps.

Now what? You can't lead a diamond until you have pitched your heart on the 5th round of clubs. You can't run clubs until you draw 4 rounds of trump. And after you have drawn four rounds of trump and run your clubs, the only way back to your hand is to ruff a heart. That's your last trump, so when you lead a diamond, Lefty can win his ace and cash a good heart.

It seems like you are in trouble.

Discussion/Answer