Cryptic crossword clue
Brilliant achievement to release our defector 4,2,5

The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 4 plus 2 plus 5 letter word TOUR DE FORCE

I've seen this crossword clue in The Times
T
O
U
R
D
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F
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E

Buddy explains!

The straight part
We know that "Brilliant achievement" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case brilliant achievement = tour de force.
The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.
This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.

Crossword Answer definitions

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