Shubhankar, Om Prakash falter at Alfred Dunhill

  first two rounds offered big disappointment for Indians, as Shubhankar Sharma and Om Prakash Chouhan were placed tied 139 and 154 respectively in Alfred Dunhill Links Championship.

Sharma shot even par rounds at Carnoustie and Kingsbarns but that saw him way down in tied 139th , while Chouhan was even furr down with 71-75 and was at tied 154th.

Sharma still has his round to go, while Chouhan will play his third round at Carnoustie.

Meanwhile, Nicolas Colsaerts relied on local knowledge as he shot a stunning 65 to share le with Cameron John after second round.

Belgian kicked off his campaign with a 65 at Old Course at St Andrews and recorded same score at notoriously tricky Carnoustie to reach 14 under par and put himself in position to seal a fourth DP World Tour title and his first since 2019.

Scottish pair Grant Forrest and Martin Gilbert le team event on 24 under par after two rounds.

Colsaerts, 2012 Ryder Cup star, who has mixed golf and commentary work this season, has been coming to this event for 20 years, and felt his experience of Carnoustie paid dividends as he shot eight birdies and a single bogey, including gains at difficult ninth and 17th.

Australia’s John followed up his opening 62 at Kingsbarns with a 68 on Old Course, grabbing a share of le with his brilliant birdie at 17th.

John, who sits 1007th on Official World Golf Ranking, sandwiched a disappointing double bogey at fifth between birdies on fourth and sixth before closing front nine with a 25-foot birdie from off ninth green.

A ten-foot birdie at tenth took him to within a shot of le before a close-range gain on 12th saw him join overnight leer Darren Fichardt at top.

A series of pars followed before he holed from 22 feet at 17th to get to 14 under and share le with Colsaerts.

Home favourite David Law and first-round leer Fichardt were in a tie for third a shot furr back, one ahe of four-strong group on 12 under.

England's Tommy Fleetwood and Tyrrell Hatton emerged as leing pair from Kingsbarns, getting to 11 under par after rounds of 65 and 68 respectively, to sit alongside Tom Vaillant of France and Welshman James Ashfield, who is making his professional debut this week.