Arjun Atwal to lead Asia in EurAsia Cup, Bjorn to captain Europe

KUALA LUMPUR: India's Arjun Atwal will lead the Asian team at the next EurAsia Cup presented by DRB-HICOM from January 12-14, 2018. He becomes the second Indian after Jeev Milkha Singh to lead the side in the tournament. Jeev led in 2016.

Atwal was today announced as the captain for the next edition. The event returns to the Glenmarie Golf and Country Club in the Malaysian capital. The European team will be led by Thomas Bjørn. For Bjørn, it will be his first captaincy assignment since helming Continental Europe in the 2009 Seve Trophy and will provide perfect preparation for the Dane ahead of The 2018 Ryder Cup in France in September. For Atwal, the first and only Indian to win on the PGA Tour, it will be his first time in the captaincy role. Atwal is an eight-time Asian Tour champion, three-time European Tour winner and a winner on the PGA Tour, as he looks to showcase the strength of Asian golf as his team chases a maiden win at the EurAsia Cup.

The 44-year-old Atwal, who won the Asian Tour Order of Merit in 2003, said, "I am proud to captain Team Asia in this very special event. I expect to lead a strong and confident team against Europe so I'll do my best to inspire Team Asia. "With a long personal association with Malaysia, I would like to thank the Government of Malaysia, DRB-HICOM and Tun Ahmad Sarji for their continued support of the EurAsia Cup." Bjørn said: "I am delighted and honoured to be the captain of the European EurAsia Cup team and I am very much looking forward to the challenge that will await us in January from what I am sure will be a strong Asian team on home soil. "I was lucky enough to be a member of the European Team for the first EurAsia Cup in 2014 and I have seen the event grow and develop since then. We have some of the best golfers in the world in Europe and I am relishing the opportunity to work closely with them." The Asian Team competing in the 2018 EurAsia Cup will comprise the top four available players from the Asian Tour Order of Merit plus the top four available players from the Official World Golf Rankings.

The European Team competing in the 2018 EurAsia Cup shall comprise the 10 leading available European members from the final 2017 Race to Dubai Rankings and Bjørn will choose the remaining two European Members in the week commencing Monday, November 20, 2017.