Atwal takes share of lead
MAURITIUS: Arjun Atwal fought tough conditions and fatigue to keep a share of the lead with a battling three-under-par 68 at the end of the third round at the Afrasia Bank Mauritius Open.
He now shares the lead with Louis De Jager of South Africa, who produced a bogeyfree 67.
Still recovering from a 16-hour journey from Kuala Lumpur, Atwal is searching for a ninth Asian Tour title and his first since 2014.
Atwal, a former Asian Tour number one and captain of the Asian team for next month’s Eurasia Cup, enjoyed a solid front nine 32 before adding his fifth birdie on hole 14. He was ahead by one-shot heading into 18 but missed a four-foot par putt to finish on 13-under-par 200 at the Heritage Golf Club.
Other Indians in the fray -Shiv Kapur, who has two wins this season, moved up to T-12 with a fine round 68 and is six behind the leaders, while Gaganjeet Bhullar (67) moved up to T-24 at 5-under. But SSP Chawrasia (73) slipped from T-13 to T-28 at 4-under.
INDIA U-17 GIRLS END FOURTH
MUMBAI: The India Under-17 girls team has returned home after ending up fourth in the Youth Olympic Games Rugby Sevens Qualifiers held at Dubai Sports City, Dubai.
A total of 12 countries from across Asia, including Japan, Laos, Kazakhstan, Iran, Sri Lanka, Philippines, China Thailand, Malaysia, India and hosts UAE, fought for top honours at the championship.
RUTHVIKA, LAKSHYA ENTER FINAL
MUMBAI: India’s Ruthvika Shivani Gadde and Lakshya Sen entered the women’s and men’s singles final at the $20,000 Tata Open International Badminton.