Seasoned Indians SSP Chawrasia and Anirban Lahiri were on Tuesday named in the Arjun Atwal-led Team Asia for the EurAsia Cup golf tournament to be held here from January 12 to 14.
Also making the cut in the Team Asia were current Order of Merit leader Gavin Green, Kiradech Aphibarnrat and Li Hao- tong representing Asia.
Thai teenager Phachara Khongwatmai, Poom Saksansin, Malaysia’s Green and Chawrasia make up the leading four Asian players on the Order of Merit who qualified for Team Asia.
Yuta Ikeda of Japan, ranked 37th on the Official World Golf Ranking, Li of China, Lahiri, and Kiradech of Thailand earned their spot in as the leading available Asians on the world ranking.
Korea’s Byeonghun An, who represented Team Asia in the second edition in 2016, will make his return to the team after being selected as a captain’s pick.
Joining him as a captain Arjun Atwal’s wildcard pick were Hideto Tanihara of Japan and Nicholas Fung of Malaysia who will make their third appearance in the EurAsia Cup.
Sunghoon Kang of Korea, a winner on the Asian Tour, will make his debut after being selected as the final captain’s pick.
Team Asia will have a combined total of 58 titles won worldwide while six players in the 12-man team are still in their 20s. Phachara is the youngest at 18 and Tanihara is the oldest at 39.
“I’m proud to announce my team which is predominantly represented by young players. Most of them are still in their 20s but they have achieved huge success at a young age and have established themselves in the game,” said Atwal.
“Seven players in my team are ranked inside the top-100 on the Official World Golf Ranking and this underlines the strength of Team Asia. This is a strong team and it will be our goal to win the EurAsia Cup,” he added.
The 23-year-old Green will represent Team Asia for the first time after a splendid 2017 season where he won his first Asian Tour title and finished runner-up three times.
Atwal will also rely on the experience of countrymen Lahiri, who represented Team Asia in the last two editions, and Chawrasia, who successfully defended the Hero Indian Open earlier this year.
The EurAsia Cup will feature 24 matches, with day one showcasing six Fourball matches, followed by six Foursomes matches and 12 Singles matches on the third day.
Team Europe will feature Rafa Cabrera-Bello, Paul Casey, Paul Dunne, Ross Fisher, Matthew Fitzpatrick, Tommy Fleetwood, Tyrrell Hatton, Alex Levy, Alex Noren, Thomas Pieters, Henrik Stenson and Bernd Wiesberger.