New Delhi [India], October 13 (ANI): A timely domestic victory has given Shubhankar Sharma fresh confidence ahead of the DP World India Championship, while Anirban Lahiri is banking on a seven-week break to revive his fortunes as the two Indians prepare to take on a star-studded international field at the Delhi Golf Club, at the tournament which takes place from October 15-18.
Sharma, a two-time DP World Tour winner, ended a frustrating spell by rediscovering the fundamentals of his game last week. Lahiri meanwhile has used his time away from competition to address the physical and mental demands of a long professional career after admitting that his recent season was among his weakest in years, according to a press release from the DP World India Championship.
Their contrasting preparations offer two compelling Indian storylines ahead of the US$ 4 million DP World India Championship, which features Rory McIlroy, Justin Rose, Ryan Fox, Aaron Rai, Tommy Fleetwood, Shane Lowry, Luke Donald, among others. In total, DP World India Championship has seven Major champions in the field, including three of the four reigning Major winners.
For Sharma, the immediate priority is to build on last week’s victory rather than treat it as a complete solution to his problems. The Indian had been struggling to convert hours of practice into results, with repeated missed cuts eroding his confidence.
“My main goal of playing last week was to gain some momentum coming into this week. I wasn’t thinking about winning. I was just thinking about coming back, meeting all my friends and figuring out what the problem was with the game,” Sharma said.
“It was just fundamentals, just the basics which we had to figure out and we did that. That was my biggest victory.”
The win was particularly significant because Sharma believes he had been working hard without addressing the real issues in his game.
“I felt like I was putting in the work from Monday to Wednesday week after week and then just ending up doing laundry on Saturday,” he said.
The solution involved returning to older clubs, making minor adjustments and abandoning technical changes that had taken him away from his natural playing feel.
“I went back to old clubs with some minor adjustments. But then after that it was just going back to old feels and unlearning the things that I picked up, bad habits that I picked up while changing clubs,” he said.
Sharma hopes the improvement will carry into a championship where he has unfinished business. Last year, he produced an impressive second round but could not sustain the momentum over the weekend. This time, he wants to be in contention on Sunday.
“Personally for me, I always wanted to play a big event here and have the chance to win on the 18th hole,” he said. “Just to have that chance every year coming back is very special.”
The Delhi Golf Club also brings back memories of Sharma’s early years. He played junior events at the venue and remembers watching Ernie Els at a clinic in 2008, when he was about 12. Now, competing against some of the world’s leading golfers, he sees the championship as an opportunity for Indian players and young fans to understand what is possible at the highest level.
“I never thought we could have an event of this stature in India,” he said. “For kids just to see the best coming to India, this is where dreams are formed.”
Lahiri’s challenge is different. The 38-year-old has not played a tournament in about seven weeks, taking time off after a season that left him dissatisfied before returning to intensive preparation in Dubai.
“I wasn’t very happy with how I played the season. It was probably my weakest season in the last few,” he admitted.
Instead of immediately resuming full golf practice, Lahiri spent the first three-and-a-half weeks concentrating on fitness, recovery and mental freshness. The break also allowed him to spend time with his family after years of travelling on the professional circuit.
“I’m excited. I’m fresh. Mentally I’m in a really good space,” he said.
The test now is to translate that renewed energy into competitive form, particularly on a course he knows intimately but believes has become more demanding.
Lahiri’s connection with the Delhi Golf Club stretches back to 1999, when he played his first C-category tournament on the Peacock Course. The memories include sharing the first two rounds with Gaganjeet Bhullar, long before either had established himself as an international professional.
“It’s just nice. There is a sense of familiarity, a feeling of being at home, which is wonderful,” Lahiri said.
The welcome from young fans has also made an impression, with the Indian saying the enthusiasm around the championship had strengthened his motivation to perform.
On the course, Lahiri expects precision rather than power to determine success. The redesigned, firm greens will place a premium on approach play, while keeping the ball in the fairway could encourage players to use irons off the tee rather than drivers.
“I think this week is all about iron play,” he said. “If you can keep it in the fairways, you’re going to give yourself a lot of opportunity to make birdies.”
Lahiri also expects the quality of the field to produce low scores, pointing to Tommy Fleetwood’s winning total of more than 20-under-par last year as a benchmark. But he cautioned that wind, rain and delays could alter the scoring conditions.
Sharma’s motivation remains clear: to test himself against the best rather than retreat from the challenge.
“For me the answer has always been very simple: I want to play with the best,” he said. “It’s not about being comfortable for me. It’s about being uncomfortable and conquering that feeling and going and performing.”
After two difficult seasons, his domestic victory offers a tangible reason for optimism. Lahiri, meanwhile, arrives mentally refreshed and eager to make the most of a venue that feels like home.
Both now face the same question: can they turn preparation and renewed belief into four competitive rounds when the championship begins on Thursday? (ANI)
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