Akshay joins Manu Gandas in clubhouse lead at Trident Open

Chandigarh, Nov 12 (PTI) Local golfer Akshay Sharma carded a two-under 70 to join Manu Gandas in the clubhouse lead on day two of the Rs one crore Trident Open, being played at the Chandigarh Golf Club on Wednesday.

Akshay (69-70) aggregated five-under 139 to lead the field along with Manu (66-73).

The second round could not be completed as play was suspended due to fading light. Seven players out of 123 are yet to finish their second round. They will resume play early on Thursday.

Mohammed Somrat Sikdar of Bangladesh, one of seven players with an unfinished second round, was sitting at six-under after 16 holes when play came to a halt on day two.

He will be a strong contender for the halfway lead once play resumes.

Former India No. 1 junior Shubham Jaglan, who has been playing professional golf in the US this year and is making his PGTI debut, was tied third in the clubhouse at a total of four-under 140 along with Bangladesh's Badal Hossain, Mohd Azhar, Shamim Khan, Shaurya Bhattacharya and Manoj S.

PGTI Ranking leader and local lad Yuvraj Sandhu, made a strong comeback on day two after his opening round of 72. He shot a 69 on Wednesday to take his total to three-under 141.

The cut is likely to fall at one-over 148 at the end of round two.

Akshay Sharma, 35, a winner of three professional titles, is searching for his first win on his home course. Akshay began the day on a solid note with tap-in birdies on the second and third holes.

As he kept hitting his shots close to the flags, he picked up another birdie on the 11th. Akshay dropped his only bogey of the day on the 13th.

Manu, who finished as the first-round leader, kept himself in the hunt despite his 73 on day two. Somrat Sikdar was two-under through 16 holes on day two thanks to his exceptional wedge-play and a 30-feet conversion. PTI AM AM KHS