Kuala Lumpur, April 8 (IANS): Asian golf stars Anirban Lahiri and Siddikur Rahman will compete in the Maybank Malaysian Open April 17-20 with renewed self-belief that they can compete on a level playing field against the world’s best players.
Following their heroic performances at the recent EurAsia Cup where Team Asia gallantly fought back to earn a tie with Team Europe here, both players, who contributed two points each in the memorable 10-10 draw, are feeling confident ahead of the $2.75 million showpiece at the Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country Club.
They will be among a stellar cast of players which includes former Malaysian Open champions Lee Westwood of England, Matteo Manassero of Italy, South Africa’s Louis Oosthuizen and Thai duo Kiradech Aphibarnrat and Thongchai Jaidee in the event sanctioned by the Asian Tour and European Tour.
Scott Hend of Australia, ranked second in the 2013 Asian Tour Order of Merit and Thaworn Wiratchant of Thailand will also feature in the Malaysian Open alongside recent Asian Tour winners Richard Lee of Canada and Rashid Khan of India.
Lahiri and Siddikur formed a formidable partnership when they earned a vital win to spark Team Asia’s comeback after a 0-5 defeat in the opening day’s fourball in the inaugural EurAsia Cup presented by DRB-HICOM.
The 26-year-old Lahiri, who defeated Victor Dubuisson of France 2 and 1 in the singles, believes that the added confidence will give him an edge at the Malaysian Open where he will be aiming for a fourth Asian Tour victory.
“I’m looking forward to coming back to Malaysia. The EurAsia Cup was a phenomenal week for all of us and there will be lots of positivity every time I come back to Malaysia now. I’m playing well and hopefully I can keep the form going in the next few weeks,” said Lahiri.
After winning three Asian Tour titles on home soil, the talented Indian is determined to claim his biggest career victory yet in his burgeoning career.
“I think I’ve learned over the years and improved from the initial hiccups. I’m pretty much at home now with my game. I’ve had some good performances and hopefully this year, I will have a breakthrough performance (winning a co-sanctioned tournament).”
The popular Siddikur, who has not finished outside the top-five on the Asian Tour Order of Merit in the last two seasons, will seek to better his tied eighth finish at the 2011 Malaysian Open.
He was also a dominant figure in the EurAsia Cup after contributing two points for Team Asia which included an impressive 4 and 3 victory over Stephen Gallacher in the singles.
“I am looking forward to the Malaysian Open. It’s a challenging golf course but I’ve always played good at the Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country Club,” said the two-time Asian Tour winner.
“I played some good golf at the EurAsia Cup and it was really good experience to play with the European players, some of them who are Ryder Cup players. It was really good for the Asian players to force the tie to show our capabilities. I learned many things from out of that week and I’m sure it will help me in my career,” added the straight-shooting Bangladeshi.
