Declarer play: Should I duck or not?

Situations where declarer should think carefully about whether to duck or win the trick.
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tinyurl.com/2hprhpdm (with J in dummy, 10 in hand) Do Not Duck
tinyurl.com/yddkxfju Do not duck A (just J in dummy)
tinyurl.com/y9r5ofp5 Ducking is defeated
tinyurl.com/22263wob - if you win the first trick, they will probably switch to a trump later
tinyurl.com/24f64rz6 - if you duck they may not switch to a trump
tinyurl.com/228b65jt - must play a low club from each hand at trick 2
tinyurl.com/2aach7g8 - if you win the first club, you will likely be defeated
tinyurl.com/2bp5hz4w - Makes if you duck (DUCK AH)
tinyurl.com/2a2xyqzn - Likely to be defeated if you win trick 1

[@williamthurl2607]

I agree about ducking the first Diamond but alert defence will still defeat you by playing Ace and another trump ,as Spades are 4-2 and AQ of Clubs are ' wrong'.

[@TonyStawBridgeClass]

That's right - you can still be defeated, but ducking may give you a better chance especially against weaker opponents.

[@redmardamsma7917]

Why is it better to duck the ace on the last hand? I would win the ace, draw trumps and then return a heart, trying to force them to return a club or a diamond. Or is that the same thing as ducking at trick 1?

[@YCLP]

It's all about the diamond layout. If the diamond finesse is offside (which is the case here), then ONLY the West defender can lead diamonds and force TWO diamond losers (before you can discard one on clubs). West is 'dangerous'. Since East will win the first heart trick if you duck, it it's better to do so. That way the dangerous West player can never get on lead. If you do take your Ah immediately, then the dangerous West can get on lead with a Heart later and play that dreaded diamond.

[@redmardamsma7917]

@@YCLPthanks! I had not spotted that West was the danger hand, I understand it now

[@KyleButt]

For the hand at 9:06, not only should declarer duck, but this is an excellent time to falsecard. Playing the 3 makes it seem a little more like East is encouraging. If South had A42, and East played the 3, Playing the 4 would definitely conceal a lower card.