Women's Golf Association of India

Diksha, Aditi stay in title hunt at tied third in Belgium

Hulencourt (Belgium), July 5: India's experienced Olympians Diksha Dagar and Aditi Ashok remained firmly in contention at the Hulencourt Women's Open after moving into a share of third place heading into the final round, keeping India's hopes alive for another strong finish on the Ladies European Tour.

Diksha (71) and Aditi (70) closed the third round at five-under-par 211, five shots behind Australia's Kelsey Bennett, who seized control of the tournament with a composed three-under 69 to reach 10-under and open a two-shot advantage over Spain's Carolina Chacarra.

Hero-backed Diksha produced another steady display, carding a one-under 71 to stay in touch with the leaders despite difficult scoring conditions. Starting confidently, she picked up birdies on the second and ninth holes before dropping her lone shot of the day at the 10th. A string of eight successive pars thereafter ensured the two-time LET winner remained within striking distance entering Sunday's decisive round.

Aditi, meanwhile, overcame a mixed day to post a two-under 70. The five-time LET winner appeared to be slipping out of contention after three bogeys during the round, but she responded impressively by birdieing three of her final four holes to join Diksha in tied third.

The finish underlined Aditi's ability to recover under pressure and kept alive her hopes of adding another LET title to her impressive resume. Her maiden victory on the Tour had come at the Hero Women's Indian Open exactly a decade ago.

Among the other Indians, Pranavi Urs slipped to tied 42nd after returning a one-over 73. Her round featured three birdies but was offset by four bogeys as she dropped down the leaderboard.

Youngster Avani Prashanth endured a disappointing day on a day of strong winds. She mixed an eagle and a birdie with three bogeys on the front nine but unravelled on the inward half with four consecutive bogeys from the 11th, another dropped shot on the 16th and a double bogey on the closing hole. Her seven-over 79 pushed her down to tied 51st.

Speaking after the round, Aditi admitted she had not been at her best but was pleased with how she salvaged her score.

"I didn't feel like I had my good stuff today, but I managed to hole a couple of long putts towards the end and that made a big difference," she said.

Playing in Belgium for the first time, Aditi is using the tournament as preparation for next week's Amundi Evian Championship.

"I've always gone straight from the United States to Evian and struggled there. This year I wanted to arrive in Europe earlier, get used to the conditions and time zone, and playing here is good preparation," she added.

At the top of the leaderboard, Bennett emerged as the player to catch after producing another mature performance. Beginning the day two shots behind overnight leader Carolina Chacarra, the Australian quickly narrowed the gap with an early birdie before capitalising on a dramatic swing at the ninth hole.

While Bennett birdied the par-five, Chacarra suffered a costly double bogey, handing the Australian a two-shot lead. Both players birdied the 10th, but Bennett briefly gave one shot back with a bogey at the next.

As winds strengthened over the Hulencourt Golf Club during the afternoon, scoring became increasingly difficult. Bennett responded with a crucial birdie on the 15th before safely negotiating the closing holes to sign for a 69 and establish a two-shot cushion.

Chacarra, who had dazzled with a course-record 65 in the second round, struggled to replicate that form in the tougher conditions and settled for a two-over 74, dropping into second place on eight-under.

Bennett is chasing her second Ladies European Tour title after winning the Australian Women's Classic earlier this year and currently sits among the leading players on the LET Order of Merit.

Thailand's Trichat Cheenglab occupied fifth place on three-under, while Ireland's Anna Foster, England's Bronte Law and Switzerland's Morgane Metraux shared sixth on two-under.

With Bennett holding the advantage but only five shots separating the leader from the Indian duo, Diksha and Aditi will look to produce a low final round and mount a strong challenge for the title in Belgium.