Indian duo Shiv Kapur and Arjun Atwal go into the final day of the Dubai Open holding the joint lead with South Africa’s Jbe Kruger and Korean teenager Wang Jeung-hun after Saturday’s third round.
There are 21 players within three shots of the lead going into Sunday’s final round at the Els Club Dubai, including 2011 British Open champion Darren Clarke, who fired a 64 to end the day one shot back of the leading quartet.
Kruger also shot a 64, which included the Dubai Open’s first hole-in-one and an eagle, while Wang, 19, who has not missed a cut this season, shot a 68 to put himself in contention for a maiden Asian Tour victory.
Co-overnight leader Kapur, a Dubai resident, overcame two early bogeys with an inward 31 and his round of 69 kept him in the joint lead on 10-under-par 206 with Atwal, who mixed six birdies against two bogeys for a 68.
Including Clarke, six players lie a stroke back. Also on 208 are Thailand’s Chapchai Nirat (67) and Pariya Junhasavasdikul (67), Japan’s Daisuke Kataoka (68), India’s Gaganjeet Bhullar (69) and Scotsman Simon Yates (69).
Two-time Asian Tour No 1 Thaworn Wiratchant of Thailand, who has won twice this year, fired a 65 to be two off the pace at 208.
Kapur, who won the European Challenge Tour’s season-ending tournament in Dubai last year, is hopeful of completing a Dubai double despite a few setbacks yesterday, including a bogey-bogey start and a missed eagle putt on 18 that would have given him the outright lead.
“Yeah, it was a nightmare of a start. I didn’t really hit any poor shots and then actually holed about a 15-footer for par on the fourth hole to sort of keep the round going,” Kapur, 32, said.
“I’m happy with the way I fought back. There was a time where I could completely have thrown myself out of the tournament, so I’m tied for the lead, not too bad.”
Atwal, Asia’s No 1 in 2003, has not contended since becoming the first Indian to win on the PGA Tour in 2010 and reckons the hottest putter today will walk away with the Dubai Open crown.
“It’s been a while,” said the seven-time Asian Tour winner. “Just make a lot of putts. Make a lot of birdies. It’s going to be fun tomorrow I think.”
Kruger believes he left some shots out on the course despite nailing a seven iron for his ace on the par three second hole.
“I hit a seven iron but probably pitched perfect and probably trickled down,” said Kruger, who is a one-time winner in Asia.
“I three-putted 17 and I probably hit it inside of 10 feet probably five times and didn’t make one. So it could have been a lot lower. But you can’t complain with a round like that.”
Clarke, who won the British Open in 2011, charged up the leader board with six birdies and an eagle on the 16th.
“I shot two 64s in a Pro Am event in Turkey two weeks ago, the Banco Classic, so I’m playing better again which is nice,” the Northern Irishman said.
“I’m here to play. I’m not here to make up the numbers. My timing has been off a little bit because of all the weight that I’ve lost. So because of that, it’s taken a bit of time and it’s starting to come back now.”
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Three ways to limit your social media use
Clinical psychologist, Dr Saliha Afridi at The Lighthouse Arabia suggests three easy things you can do every day to cut back on the time you spend online.
1. Put the social media app in a folder on the second or third screen of your phone so it has to remain a conscious decision to open, rather than something your fingers gravitate towards without consideration.
2. Schedule a time to use social media instead of consistently throughout the day. I recommend setting aside certain times of the day or week when you upload pictures or share information.
3. Take a mental snapshot rather than a photo on your phone. Instead of sharing it with your social world, try to absorb the moment, connect with your feeling, experience the moment with all five of your senses. You will have a memory of that moment more vividly and for far longer than if you take a picture of it.
The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
Price: From Dh439,000
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A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
The rules on fostering in the UAE
A foster couple or family must:
- be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
- not be younger than 25 years old
- not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
- be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
- have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
- undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
- A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Qyubic
Started: October 2023
Founder: Namrata Raina
Based: Dubai
Sector: E-commerce
Current number of staff: 10
Investment stage: Pre-seed
Initial investment: Undisclosed
Cricket World Cup League 2
UAE squad
Rahul Chopra (captain), Aayan Afzal Khan, Ali Naseer, Aryansh Sharma, Basil Hameed, Dhruv Parashar, Junaid Siddique, Muhammad Farooq, Muhammad Jawadullah, Muhammad Waseem, Omid Rahman, Rahul Bhatia, Tanish Suri, Vishnu Sukumaran, Vriitya Aravind
Fixtures
Friday, November 1 – Oman v UAE
Sunday, November 3 – UAE v Netherlands
Thursday, November 7 – UAE v Oman
Saturday, November 9 – Netherlands v UAE
EXPATS
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NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
What went into the film
25 visual effects (VFX) studios
2,150 VFX shots in a film with 2,500 shots
1,000 VFX artists
3,000 technicians
10 Concept artists, 25 3D designers
New sound technology, named 4D SRL
The biog
Favourite hobby: I love to sing but I don’t get to sing as much nowadays sadly.
Favourite book: Anything by Sidney Sheldon.
Favourite movie: The Exorcist 2. It is a big thing in our family to sit around together and watch horror movies, I love watching them.
Favourite holiday destination: The favourite place I have been to is Florence, it is a beautiful city. My dream though has always been to visit Cyprus, I really want to go there.
The specs: 2018 Nissan Patrol Nismo
Price: base / as tested: Dh382,000
Engine: 5.6-litre V8
Gearbox: Seven-speed automatic
Power: 428hp @ 5,800rpm
Torque: 560Nm @ 3,600rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 12.7L / 100km
Ms Yang's top tips for parents new to the UAE
- Join parent networks
- Look beyond school fees
- Keep an open mind
The specs
Engine: four-litre V6 and 3.5-litre V6 twin-turbo
Transmission: six-speed and 10-speed
Power: 271 and 409 horsepower
Torque: 385 and 650Nm
Price: from Dh229,900 to Dh355,000
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The biog
Born: Kuwait in 1986
Family: She is the youngest of seven siblings
Time in the UAE: 10 years
Hobbies: audiobooks and fitness: she works out every day, enjoying kickboxing and basketball
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