Golfer Shubhankar joint top at Bangladesh Open

Young Indian golfer Shubhankar Sharma rode on his recent run of good form to sign for a superb seven-under 64, grabbing a share of the opening round lead with Jazz Janewattananond of Thailand at the Bashundhara Bangladesh Open here on Wednesday.

The 20-year-old Indian, who finished third in the last edition, fired nine birdies against two bogeys to lead by two shots alongside 21-year-old Jazz, who was equally impressive with one eagle and six birdies against a bogey, at the Kurmitola Golf Club.

Panuphol Pittayarat of Thailand carded a 66 to sit in third place while Singapore's Koh Deng Shan lurks three shots off the pace in fourth following a 67 at the $300,000 event, which is the third leg of the Asian Tour schedule this season.

Buoyed by a tied-11th and a tied-ninth finishes in Singapore and Myanmar respectively over the last two weeks, Shubhankar, placed 10th on the current Order of Merit, hopes to ride high on his confidence and push for a breakthrough win this week.

"I am very happy with the round. I just hung in there and made all the crucial putts. I hit it pretty close for all the birdies I made today. Everything was good for me today. The shots that I missed, I didn't miss by much. It could have been better," Shubhankar said in an Asian Tour release.

"I have been playing well. I am just riding on my good form. I was hoping to get a good start to the week and I did. I just wanted to keep playing the way I have been playing. I am feeling confident with my game but I am not really thinking about winning yet."

Among other Indians, Chiragh Kumar was fifth with a 68, while Khalin Joshi carded 69 to share a spot with eight others at the sixth spot.

Mukesh Kumar, Honey Baisoya finished tied 15th with a 70 each, while Udayan Mane (71) and Sujjan Singh (72) were tied 29th and joint 46th respectively.

Local hero Siddikur Rahman, a two-time winner on the Asian Tour, battled to a 71 to tie in 29th position.

Singapore's Mardan Mamat, who won the tournament two years ago, returned with a 72 while Indian veteran star Jeev Milkha Singh carded a 74.

--IANS

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