By Rahul Banerji
Joint overnight leader Martin Couvra of France topped the field after the second round of the Delhi Challenge with a 5 under-par round of 67 on day two at Classic Golf and Country Club near Gurgaon on Friday.
Couvra took the outright lead with a clean card that had five birdies and now totals 12 under 132 with England’s James Allan close on his heels, the Challenge Tour website said.
Akshay Sharma (68-69) and Angad Cheema (71-66) were the best placed of the home contingent in tied 20th place on 7 under 137 aggregates, with Vikarabad’s Mohd Azhar (72-66) a stroke behind in shared 27th on 6 under 138.
Couvra, 20, is a past winner at the Challenge de España as an amateur in 2023, which made him only the seventh amateur to win on the Challenge Tour.
He is hoping to draw on that experience over the next two days as he goes in search of a second victory and a first since turning professional.
“I know that I can win,” he said. “I just need to keep great body language, keep a great attitude and just play my game and we’ll see at the end of the week.
Good experience
“The experience of last year was amazing for me. I’m finding out that it’s becoming easier to play now that I know the challenges that comes with playing on tour and how each tournament is different.”
Couvra sits 10th on the Road to Mallorca Rankings ahead of the events in Gurgaon and then Kolkata, and in only the fifth outing of the season, he’s pleased with where his game is at.
“My game is in really good shape and it’s good to play like this on this course,” he said. “With my game feeling as it does, it’s good to make the most of it and play well when it matters.
“I’m happy to be first on the leaderboard but I have two rounds to go, so I need to keep patient and just enjoy it.”
Scotland’s Euan Walker carded a clean 7 under 65 that included three birdies in his final three holes, to move into a share of third alongside Frenchman Andoni Etchenique on 10 under par.
Close pack
Six players were a shot further back on 9 under par, including Finland’s Oliver Lindell, Irishman Conor Purcell, Frenchman Oihan Guillamoundeguy and the English trio of John Parry, Jack Senior and Chris Paisley.
A further shot behind Azhar in tied 35th on 5 under 139s were Shamim Khan (69-70), Aadil Bedi (70-69), Honey Baisoya (71-68), Shivendra Singh Sisodia (72-67), and Udayan Mane (71-68).
Yashas Chandra M.S. (71-69). Sachin Baisoya (69-71), Rohan Dhole Patil (71-69), Samarth Dwivedi (71-69), and Harsh Gangwar (72-68) made the cut on the line at 4 under par 140.
Those just missing out at 3 under included Trishul Chinnappa, Karan Pratap Singh, Harendra Gupta, Sunhit Bishnoi, M. Dharma, Ravi Kumar, Aman Raj, Manu Gandas, and Om Prakash Chouhan while a further 30 Indian players were further down.
Also read: Brown, Couvra co-lead Delhi Challenge field after opening day
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