Piedmont (Italy), May 29: Indian golfer Tvesa Malik was on fire on the back nine of the second round with six birdies, rising to tied fifth position from 52 in the Italian Open here on Saturday.
She raced to 6-under 30 for the stretch and a total of 6-under 66 for the round.
Tvesa had carded 2-over 74 in the first round and now has a total of 4-under for 36 holes.
Diksha Dagar, who is making a comeback after a back injury, will also likely make the cut as she followed up her first 74 with a second round of 1-over 73 to be 3-over for two rounds. She was lying tied 56 but with many other players yet to finish.
The third Indian, Astha Madan, who had 77 in first round, was yet to begin her second round.
Tvesa, whose career-best finish on the Ladies European Tour came at home in the Hero Women’s Indian Open, is now 4-under 140. She has risen from overnight tied 52nd to tied fifth, which could change as the round progresses as a good number of players have yet to finish their second round.
The 25-year-old Tvesa was even for the front nine which included three birdies, a double bogey on Par-3 third and a bogey on Par-4 ninth, where she dropped a shot for second day running.
Needing a strong back nine to ensure her stay in the tournament, Tvesa was on fire on the second stretch. She birdied 11th and 12th and then had three in a row from 14th to 16th holes and capped it with a birdie on 18th.
In all, she had nine birdies, including six on the back nine, during the round.
The leader is Gabriela Cowley of England, who followed up her first round 67 with a second round 71 to get to 6-under, while Spain’s Maria Hernandez (71-68) was second at 5-under alongside first round co-leader amateur, Lucie Malchirand, who had just begun her second round after a first round of 66.
She was 1-over through four holes in the second round. (PTI)
Follow our WhatsApp channel