Defense

[plaur]

[hv=d=s&n=sk53hk932daj62c94&e=st8haqt75d854cj63]266|200|1♠ 2♦

2NT 4♠

partner leads ♥8

♥8,2,Q,4

♥A,J,6,3[/hv]

What do you play at trick 3 and why?

[vuroth]

♣

 

If partner has a ♦ trick, I don't think it's going away. ♠ looks like it can only help partner.

 

My only other thought is a ♥. Partner normally shouldn't lead this way if a ruff could cost her a natural trump trick, although there are enough points in the deck in this case that partner may have been hard up for a lead.

 

V

[karlson]

So if declarer has something like AQJxx Jx Hx Kxx, we need to play a club now. If he has something like AQ9xx Jx KQx KQx, we need to play a heart. Obviously these both work missing one of the top diamonds too.

 

Seems like rather a guess to me.

[plaur]

[hv=n=sk53hk932daj62c94&w=sq92h86dk97ckt752&e=st8haqt75d854cj63&s=saj764hj4dqt3caq8]399|300|[/hv]

I led back ♥7 where declarer dropped a club. Partner lead a club back and declarer took a spade hook into partners Q and went down one.

[han]

I think it might be better to play a club at trick 2.

[Finch]

I think it might be better to play a club at trick 2.

I think it might be better too, although it looks a bit silly when partner has a led a singleton heart. I don't think there's an obvious answer to this, except that once we've decided to cash the ace of hearts it seems a bit churlish not to play a third one.