A Strange Push

I noticed in the Bulletin today that Phillip Alder had written a nice story about a push board.  However I am going to write a story about one of the strangest pushes I have seen in a long time.   It was Board 9 of the match between China and Argentina in the Bermuda Bowl.  This is the deal

Board 9 Dealer North. East-West Vulnerable.

	♠ K1094 ♥ 5 ♦ J1097 ♣ AK97
♠ Q75 ♥ QJ872 ♦ A5 ♣ J65		♠ A62 ♥ K ♦ KQ86  ♣ Q8432
	♠ J83 ♥ A109643 ♦ 432 ♣ 10

The closed room played this deal first and this is how the auction started

Zhuang had a 14 count and wanted to get into the auction.  But his club suit had been bid.  He decided to make an overcall in his four card suit, a bid that probably most of us would have foregone vulnerable.  Now South made a negative double which was simply showed four plus hearts.  

The auction continue with a redouble by West (card showing I guess) and 1♠ by North.  East made another aggressive (in my opinion) call by bidding 1NT with the singleton king of hearts.  It was now up to South.  With 5 high and no fit in his partner’s suit Ravenna also made an aggressive call (non vulnerable it is true) by bidding 2♥.  West was happy and he was allowed to play there.  Things got a bit nasty in the play.  West started with a high diamond but switched at trick two to a club.  South played another top club discarding a heart.  He then played a heart to the ace but when he saw the ♥K in the hand of the 1NT bidder he reasonably thought he might have another one and made his first mistake of playing a second heart.  West won and returned a club ruffed by South.  Now South played a spade and misguessed rather badly by playing the ♠K.  In the end he drifted down 4 for –200. 

In the Open Room the auction took a much stranger turn.  Here North opened 1♦ and East disdained a two level overcalled.  South made a preemptive jump overcall of 2♥.  This is how the auction continued

South now made a surprise bid he redoubled.  This was not alerted and to the best of our knowledge it was for penalty but in the context that he had made a weak jump overcall.  This got passed out to the joy of West.  The hand probably should go 2 down on best play and best defense after the opening spade lead.  The defense faltered and in the end declarer got out for 1 down, –200 and a very strange push.