Aakef, owned by Yasser Ammar A Jalil, trained by Taleb Ali and to be ridden by Hussain Makki, is tipped to win the Shaikh Abdulla bin Hamad Al Khalifa Cup for imported horses which carries a cash prize of BD2,000 and to be run over 1,400 metres, starting at 5.30pm.

Burning Flute and Dry Ice are the second and third favourites respectively.

Cipher, owned by Al Nasseriyeh, trained by Alan Smith and to be ridden by Paul Smith, is the favourite to win the Blue Dawn Cup, an open race, which also carries a cash prize of BD2,000 and to be run over 2,400 metres, starting at 5.05pm.

Ausonius and Distinctive Voice are the favourite's main challengers.

The day's action begins with the race for Arbian horses to be run over 1,200 metres, starting at 2.35pm.

Obeyaan 1335, owned by Al Wasmiya, trained by Abdulla Kuwaiti and to be ridden by Ali Al Saffar, looks in good shape to win this race ahead of Saqlaawy 1350 and Kuheilaan Umm Zorayr 1334.

Kaboul, owned by Eman Mahdi Ahmed, trained by Ali Jan and to be ridden by Mohammed Saeed, is the best bet to win the race for locally bred horses to be run over 1,000 metres straight, starting at 3pm. Eyeonyou and Blue Mountain are the second and third favourites respectively.

Box Office, owned by Fahad Ahmed Khalil Ali, trained by Talat Al Alawi and to be ridden by Ali Al Saffar, is expected to beat Rare Art and Senatorial in the race for imported horses to be run over 1,200 metres, starting at 3.25pm.

Bazaruto, owned by S Ali Mohammed Al Alawi, trained by Talat Al Alawi and to be ridden by Ali Al Saffar, is tipped to win the race for imported horses which carries a cash prize of BD1,000 and to be run over 1,400 metres, starting at 3.50pm.

Royal Desert and Ejaab are the favourite's closest challengers.

Best Shot, owned by Mariam Fadhel Almasqati, trained by Taher Ahmed and to be ridden by Mohammed Saeed, is the front runner to claim the race for imported horses to be run over 1,200 metres, starting at 4.15pm, ahead of its main contenders Russian Art and Aathaar.

Snake Skin, owned by Al Nasseriyeh, trained by Alan Smith and to be ridden by Paul Smith, holds an edge over Saheq and Tough of Class in the race for locally bred horses which carries a cash prize of BD1,000 and to be run over 1,800 metres, starting at 4.40pm.

Having secured the Arabian Gulf Prosperity Premiership crown with last week's 43-3 hammering of Dubai Exiles, Bahrain are now on course to register an unbeaten campaign.

Tomorrow's game will undoubtedly be the biggest test the new champions have faced so far this season, in which they have won 16 of 16 league and cup games to date. There will certainly be no lack of motivation for the home side, who lost out 15-13 in the reverse fixture in Saar just two weeks ago.

The 2008/2009 league winners will be determined to finish the year on a high after a mid-season slump effectively put paid to their hopes of retaining the title.

Add in the small factor of another meeting of these two sides in the Danway Gulf Cup Final later this month and it is clear that Friday's game will be as far from the gentle end-of-season run about as could be imagined.

The Bahrain squad has been hit by the loss of lock Mark Burnell, who injured himself in the act of scoring last week's opening try, while the in-form Stapleton brothers Shane and Ross are also unavailable.

The starting line-up will be finalised later today by head coach Jim Rowark but is poised to include Karl Sutcliffe and Euan Kelly for their first full starts for the club after both debuted from the bench against the Exiles.

Meanwhile, centre Rory Binder and flanker Mark Hooker return to contention having missed last week's encounter to give Rowark some pleasurable selection headaches in midfield and the backrow.

Speaking to the GDN ahead of the game, centre Sam Wilson said the squad is in confident mood and determined not to let the foot off the pedal this weekend.

"We're travelling to Abu Dhabi with a very strong squad, which shows we are not relaxing now that the Premiership title is in the bag," he said.

"We want to go through the season unbeaten and this fixture is maybe the hardest so far.

"We have the opportunity to deal Abu Dhabi a huge psychological blow on their own patch two weeks out from the Gulf Cup Final and the boys are fully aware of what this game means."

Bahrain squad to face Abu Dhabi Harlequins: Rich Wilkinson (capt), Gert Olivier, Brandt Steenkamp, Fabien Bernard, Carlo Calabrese, Karl Sutcliffe, Mark Hooker, Adam Knights, Tom Ham, Dan Bell, Matt Cross, Rory Binder, Sam Wilson, Euan Kelly, Jack Wakefield, Rory Power, Rob Cook, Ollie Hunt, Tom Hanratty, Jaco Lourens

Earlier yesterday, the PCB said the two "should not be part of the team in any format" following reports of in-fighting during the unsuccessful tour of Australia ending last month.

The decision prompted protesters in Hyderabad to burn bats in a brief demonstration but a few hours later the PCB clarified its position saying there was no timeframe on the bans imposed on the two.

"The PCB wishes to clarify that the recommendation of the committee is not a life ban on these cricketers," the PCB's second statement of the day said.

Inquiry

"There is no specified term in the recommendation for these two players. As and when the PCB deems appropriate, these players will be considered for selection for the national team."

The official change of stance came hours after it announced Younus and Yousuf would no longer be considered for selection after an inquiry into Pakistan's defeat in every match of their three-Test, five one-day and Twenty20 series in Australia.

The PCB handed out 12-month bans to Shoaib Malik and Rana Naved and fined Shahid Afridi and wicketkeeper Kamran Akmal three million rupees ($35,000) and Umar Akmal two million.

"Muhammad Yousuf and Younus Khan's... attitude has a trickledown effect which is a bad influence for the whole team (and they) should not be part of (the) national team in any format," the PCB said in its earlier statement yesterday.

The initial decision by the PCB left new head coach Waqar Younis shocked and left to try and rebuild a side for the defence of their Twenty20 World Cup title in West Indies in April.

"I will be talking to the board about this and see what happens," Younis told reporters from Australia.

The selectors are due to meet this week to announce the 15-member squad for the World Cup and the board will also announce a new captain.

While Yousuf and Younis were not named in the preliminary squad of 30 players for the event, Malik and Rana were.

"I want to know what I did wrong," Rana told Reuters. "I will be consulting with my people before deciding any future line of action."

The PCB said the six-member inquiry committee, headed by its chief operating officer Wasim Bari, had based its recommendations on information gathered during several hearings with the players and reports from the team management.

The event is known to be one of the most gruelling races of the Ironman Series due to the intense heat and humidity of the location. It comprised of a 3.8-kilometre swim in open water, 180-km cycling and a 42.2-km run.

Idris, who claims that he is the first Indian man to compete in an Ironman event, finished the race in 13 hours 55 minutes and seven seconds. He was placed 46th in the men's 40 to 44 age group and was 230th overall from a total of 736 athletes.

Idris completed the swim in one hour and 31.14 minutes, the cycle in six hours and 44.32 minutes and the run in five hours and 34.07 minutes.

Belgian Marino Vanhoenacker won the men's category in a combined time of 8:22.31, while Belinda Granger of Australia won the women's event in 9:23.33.

"I am really happy that I completed this event under such difficult conditions," the 41-year-old father of two told the GDN.

"I sincerely hope this performance will inspire lots of people to become more active and lead a healthy lifestyle."

The athletes who took part in the Ironman event represented 41 countries from around the globe, including Germany, Japan, South Africa, New Zealand, Italy, Australia, Belgium, Argentina, Canada, the US and several Asian nations.

After a goalless first-half, Riffa's Ismaeel Saleh scored an own goal to give Busaiteen the lead in the 52nd minute but Riffa equalised with four minutes remaining through Abdulrahman Mubarak.

Despite the draw, Riffa are still ahead in this 10-team double round robin championship with 31 points from 13 matches, ahead of defending champions and arch rivals Muharraq.

Muharraq, who are on 28 points but from 12 games, will share the lead with Riffa if they win their next tie against Al Shabab.

Missing Bahrain's rising striker Ismaeel Abdullateef due to a recent injury, Riffa entered yesterday's game with great confidence after recently winning the King's Cup and their AFC Cup Group 'E' opener against hosts Al Nahdha of Oman.

Coached by Jose Garrido of Portugal for the second straight season, Riffa's hopes were led by some of Bahrain's most prominent players, including talented midfielders Hussain Salman, Mahmood Al Ojaimi Mostapha Mokhtar of Cameroon and Serbia's Miladin Jovancic besides striker Sayed Ali Isa.

Busaiteen, who moved up to fourth place with 19 points, were looking to avenge their heavy 0-4 defeat to Riffa in this year's King Cup final which was the last clash between the two clubs.

The team in blue jerseys, under their veteran coach Khalifa Al Zayani, were relying on their experienced midfielders Ali Nairooz, Abdulwahab Ali, Bashar Qadoor of Syria, skipper Khalid Omar and dangerous striker 'Dah' of Burkina Faso.

Busaiteen almost scored in the first-half when Mohammed Sultan's 42nd-minute spectacular shot was well denied by Riffa goalkeeper Ali Saeed.

Both teams showed better play in the second-half but it was Busaiteen who broke the deadlock in the 57th minute, thanks to Riffa's veteran defender Saleh who accidentally tapped the ball into his own net.

Busaiteen were reduced to 10 men in the 68th minute when defender Ebrahim Al Obaidly received his second yellow card.

Riffa pressed forward and they eventually equalised in the 86th minute, thanks to substitute striker Mubarak whose powerful header was too strong for Busaiteen's goalkeeper Hussain Haram.

League action continues today with two matches when third-placers Al Ahli face off with Al Najma at 6.30pm.

That will be followed by a game between East Riffa (9 points) and Al Malkiya (10) who are both at the bottom section of the table. The match kicks off at 8.30pm.

They take on bitter rivals Al Hilal of Saudi Arabia in their opening match which kicks off at 2pm (Bahrain time) today.

Muharraq are looking to win this competition for a record 11 times, including nine consecutive titles between 1995 and 2003.

Coached by veteran Mohammed Al Murbati, who masterminded all the team's 10 trophies, Muharraq will head into the championship in high spirits after their recent impressive run in the ongoing Bahrain First Division League.

Muharraq will play their second match in this week-long event tomorrow against Qatari champions Al Arabi.

The third match is scheduled for Sunday against hosts Sohar of Oman, before they take on Al Nasr of the UAE on Monday and finally seven-time GCC winners Al Qadsia of Kuwait on Wednesday.

Leading Bahrain's challenge is their captain Fadhel Abbas, a prominent national team player, besides Al Nasser Club's skipper Sadeq Ebrahim who is joining the team just for this event.

Argentinean spiker Rodrigo Filapa, who signed for Muharraq earlier in the season, is also expected to play a key role in Muscat.

The team also includes other influential local players like spiker Ahmed Abdulqader and Abdulla Al Nejdi, besides playmaker Fadhel Ali, libero Ayman Haroona.

The Bahraini delegation is headed by club member Abdulrahman Juma and includes coach Al Murbati, assistant coach Yasine Al Meel, physiotherapist Mohammed Al Seba'a and 14 players.

The event flags off the 2010 International Automobile Federation (FIA) F1 World Championship and ushers in the landmark 60th Anniversary celebrations of the pinnacle of motor racing.

Many of F1's star drivers were seen along the BIC paddock yesterday in street clothes, relaxing with team members and making the most of the warm spring weather.

They also visited their team garages to get up to date with their car's assembly, while several others set out by road car or bicycle to learn the new track layout for this weekend's Grand Prix.

Among those seen at the circuit up until the early afternoon were Fernando Alonso of Ferrari, Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber of Red Bull, Sebastien Buemi of Toro Rosso, Nico Rosberg of Mercedes GP, Pedro de la Rosa of Sauber, Heikki Kovalainen of Lotus, Adrian Sutil of Force India, Timo Glock and Lucas di Grassi of Virgin, Nico Hulkenberg of Williams, Robert Kubica and Vitaly Petrov of Renault, and Bruno Senna and Karun Chandhok of Hispania Racing Team.

Returning seven-time World Champion Michael Schumacher of Mercedes GP and Jenson Button of McLaren were the last of the F1 drivers to arrive in Bahrain. Schumacher was scheduled to touch down in the early hours of this morning on a private jet. He is reportedly travelling with his wife Corinna. Button, meanwhile, was in Abu Dhabi last night for the Laureus World Sports Awards.

Among the high-profile visitors seen at BIC yesterday were General Organisation for Youth and Sports president Shaikh Fawaz bin Mohammed Al Khalifa and circuit designer Hermann Tilke.

Shaikh Fawaz gave two thumbs up on BIC's preparations for this weekend's Grand Prix, and said that Bahrain is proud to be hosting the season's opening round for the second time since its inaugural F1 event in 2004.

"There are a lot of changes this year for what is to be our seventh Grand Prix; we have an extended track for the F1 drivers to enjoy and many parts of the circuit look quite different to what it used to be," Shaikh Fawaz told the GDN.

Today, the circuit opens its doors to all three-day ticket holders who can enjoy an exclusive stroll down the F1 pit lane and see the teams gear up for the weekend's events. Gates open at 12noon while the pit walk will take place between 3pm and 5pm.

One of four world champions on what promises to be the most competitive starting grid in years when the action starts in Bahrain on Sunday, the 41-year-old German has come out of retirement to test himself against a new crop of talent.

"I feel like a child looking forward to Christmas," said the seven times champion. "I can hardly wait for the season to get underway."

It has all the makings of a classic clash but the former Red Baron will still have his work cut out to kick off his comeback with an immediate win for the 'Silver Arrows', the first Mercedes works team since 1955.

Sunday will be his first race since 2006 and first against hot-shot compatriot Sebastian Vettel and 2008 champion Lewis Hamilton, as well as a renewal of combat with old foes Fernando Alonso and new champion Jenson Button.

It will be Germany against Britain, young guns against an old master with plenty of other subplots written in. Commercial supremo Bernie Ecclestone is already rubbing his hands in anticipation.

"I feel fresher than I have for many years," added Schumacher, winner of a record 91 races and team mate to compatriot Nico Rosberg, son of former champion Keke.

"When I retired from racing in 2006, my batteries were simply empty. Now they are totally recharged and I am ready for the challenge."

Schumacher won with Ferrari at Sakhir in 2004, and his lap record will stand the test of time now that the circuit has been lengthened since last year, but that will count for little now.

Button, who has joined Hamilton at McLaren in what is the sport's first pairing of champions since Alain Prost and Ayrton Senna at the same team in 1989, has looked relaxed pre-season with his move from title-winners Brawn (now Mercedes).

He also faces a big challenge in a team that has appeared moulded around Hamilton but he too is up for it.

"Change is difficult for all of us, but it's also exciting," he told reporters.

"I've spent so much time at the factory, more than I have in any of my previous years in racing. I've really got to know people, and it's been really good.

"So I feel very at home after two months, which is crazy to say that, but I do, and I go to the first race ready to put in a good performance."

Serious

Ferrari, with Spaniard Alonso eager to assume the starring role Schumacher once had and Brazilian Felipe Massa returning from his serious head injury, have looked strong in testing.

The Italian team, who had what amounts to a nightmare for them last season, have been sounding a cautious note however.

Seven of the drivers in the four top teams are race winners and all can consider themselves genuine championship contenders.

Red Bull's Sebastian Vettel, who came into the sport after Schumacher retired with the nickname 'Baby Schumi', is one of them after ending last year as overall runner-up. His team are also going for their fourth race win in a row.

The ban on refuelling adds an extra strategic dimension while new teams, including the revived Lotus marque, have brought new faces.

Among them is Brazilian Bruno Senna, nephew of the late triple champion Ayrton, who makes his debut with the Spanish HRT team along with Indian Karun Chandhok.

Both will have a baptism of fire in a car put together against a tight deadline and shipped to Bahrain without even the most basic of tests.

Halls, after a disappointing start to the season, brought the crowd to their feet as he dominated from qualifying to the final and claimed his third consecutive clean sweep of the season on a track layout more suitable for the CRG karts of Bahraini Yahya Hassan Ali and Briton Lee Stones.

Heat one started with several drivers missing due to bad weather, and with only 15 karts on the grid. Stones took the lead from Halls in turn six, with championship leader Bahraini Abbas Sarhan driving a DHL kart in third.

It seemed that with the space available Halls would be more content to hold off Sarhan, but on lap seven and again in turn six, Stones made an error and strayed off line allowing Halls the chance to pass.

Sarhan, battling Castrol driver Mussaad Al Kowaiter and Ali, closed up to make the final five laps a very closely fought battle. The heat finished Halls, Stones and Sarhan.

The junior division was won by Egyptian ace Omar Farid ahead of the Karting4Me driver Adam Salem of Bahrain and the Castrol Kart of Christian Yarwood from Great Britain.

In heat two, Halls opened a three-second gap over the first four laps as Sarhan battled the CRG kart of Stones whilst trying to hold off the challenge of Ali, Kowaiter and Tariq Al Mahal.

They once again found the grip on the dusty track and were driving almost as one when Sarhan went wide on turn nine, allowing Ali to cut through on the inside to take third place.

The Junior drivers' battle took on new light as Salem had failed to make it to the grid so it was a fairly easy drive to first for Farid. He left the two young Britons, Yarwood and Alex Harrison, to fight over second and third.

With the dust storm in full swing and the timing system refusing to print results, Halls led the drivers on the formation lap prior to the rolling start of the 15-lap pre-final that he led from start to finish.

With maximum points at stake and only five rounds remaining, the two leading Bahraini Karts of Sarhan and Ali were locked in a nose-to-tail duel over the one-kilometre circuit. Stones got involved by lap eight but was some five seconds adrift of the leader.

On lap 15, Sarhan dived under the kart of Stones, gaining second place and blocking Ali's attempts to get by. With Stones between them, it finished Halls, Sarhan and Stones, while among the juniors, it finished Farid, Yarwood and Salem.

The final got underway and after a clean exit for all the karts, it was Halls who had a clear track, and he managed to pull out a five-turn lead by the end of lap two.

Sensing points slipping away, Sarhan broke free of Stones and Ali and attempted to make up some ground on Halls, who was catching the junior drivers' battle ahead.

On the 15th lap, the Harrison found the dirty side of the track and spun several times in front of the marshals' post on the last turn; the lower section of the circuit was thus yellow-flagged whilst officials cleared the stranded vehicle.

Once cleared, racing got back underway with Halls taking his third clean sweep by winning ahead of Sarhan and Ali. The juniors finished Farid, Salem and Yarwood.

Prizes were presented by Castrol Edge representative Ian Yarwood.

Round 13 of the 17-round championship is scheduled for March 18 at the same venue. All spectators are welcome and entrance is free. For further information, visit bahnkc.com or www.karting4me.com.

SENIORS (Top 10): 1 A Sarhan 952 points; 2 Y Hassan Ali 902; 3 W Carr 827; 4 L Stones 799; 5 T Al Mahal 794; 6 D DeMattia 696; 7 G Halls 642; 8 M Kowaiter 519; 9 G Pervis 518; 10 P Turney 485.

JUNIORS: 1 O Farid 1,056 points; 2 A Harrison 807; 3 C Yarwood 753; 4 A Salem 663; 5 R Eyles 433.

A combination of new driver line-ups, new teams, new rules and a new scoring system have combined to contrive a feast during a 19-race season that embraces a stunning mix of old and new.

From the desert circuit of Sakhir in the Gulf through a truly global series, including races on every continent, and then back to the Gulf for the finale in Abu Dhabi, this F1 title race promises a memorable roller-coaster ride - with drama all the way.

After three seasons in retirement, seven-times champion Michael Schumacher, now 41, is back in an all-Teutonic, Mercedes-owned team run by his favourite pit-wall boffin Ross Brawn.

Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button, the last two consecutive world champions, compete in the same all-British McLaren team.

And Spaniard Fernando Alonso, a double champion with Renault, has joined Brazilian comeback kid Felipe Massa in all-Latin line-up at Ferrari.

As if that were not enough, there is also the return of the great Senna and Lotus names among four new entrant teams, a first Russian driver, refuelling has been banned, narrower slick tyres are back and there is a new-fangled points payout.

But the prospect of great racing between 12 - or possibly 13 - teams (depending on whether USF1 are capable of joining the series after missing the opening four rounds), in 19 races in the 61st championship, is also riddled with questions.

Can Schumacher recapture the greatness of his earlier days before that abrupt retirement in 1996? Will the happy pairing of defending champion Button and former champion Hamilton survive a season of cut-throat competition? Schumacher has returned, looking super-fit, confident and relaxed, to lead a newly-created Mercedes Benz factory team, created by buying, and then re-badging, the hugely-successful Brawn operation that took both titles last year.

Powered

It is a British team, led by the great manager-designer Ross Brawn, based in Brackley, Northamptonshire, but decorated for a German audience, powered by German engines and running two German drivers, albeit that Nico Rosberg's father is the original 'flying Finn' Keke Rosberg, the 1982 champion.

Perhaps the most extraordinary fact, in relation to Schumacher's comeback, is that Rosberg, now 24, was only six years old when the sport's most successful driver of all time made his debut at Spa-Francorchamps in 1991.

It should be taken for granted that the 'red baron' will be just as fit and committed as a 'silver arrow' man as ever he was in his youth.

Schumacher's return will not be the only big story this season.

There is the British battle of champions at McLaren and three-way scrap between the British, German and Latin teams, not to mention Red Bull, who nearly took the title last year thanks to Sebastian Vettel.

At McLaren, Button, at 30, is the senior man - more experienced, more worldly in many ways, but lacking the intimate relationship with the team that Hamilton has enjoyed for a decade after growing up under his mentor Ron Dennis.

In a tight scrap, that kind of extra knowledge converts into a winning edge and for all their efforts to be fair and even-handed McLaren will be stretched to make it transparent that Hamilton has no advantage over the older 'new boy'.

Form suggests that Hamilton, the hottest driver of the second half of 2009, will be hard to beat whatever Button hopes to do about it.

The drive was part of a documentary shooting for the 60th anniversary celebrations of F1, which are part of this weekend's activities at the Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix.

The festivities include the gathering of 18 of the 20 surviving F1 World Champions, who include Stewart and Andretti. There will also be a fantastic display of 21 F1 cars that represent the entire era of 60 years in F1. They will be paraded along the BIC track on Race Day by the world champions themselves.

Yesterday, Stewart got behind the wheel of his Tyrrell 006, with which he won the 1973 World Championship, while Andretti was in his Lotus 79 with which he clinched the 1978 title.

They were joined in yesterday's shooting by Juan Manuel Fangio II, the nephew of late five-time World Champion Juan Manuel Fangio. Fangio II will be joining this weekend's activities representing his uncle.

He was in the Maserati 250F yesterday, which was driven by Fangio who remains one of the greatest F1 drivers of all time.

Also in yesterday's shoot were Robert Bean in the Brabham BT52 of Nelson Piquet, with which he won the 1983 championship; and Nick Fennell in the Lotus 25, which was driven in 1963 by then world titlist Jim Clark. Bean is the curator of the Brabham BT52 while Fennell is the owner of the Lotus 25.

F1 advisor to the BIC board, Martin Whitaker, was on hand helping direct the drivers.

Earlier in the day, General Organisation for Youth and Sports president Shaikh Fawaz bin Mohammed Al Khalifa toured the marquee where the car collection is on display. He was accompanied by BIC acting chief executive Shaikh Salman bin Isa Al Khalifa, while BIC board chairman Zayed Al Zayani also stopped by.

The remaining World Champions who will be in Bahrain are retired greats Sir Jack Brabham, John Surtees, Emerson Fittipaldi, Niki Lauda, Jody Scheckter, Alan Jones, Keke Rosberg, Alain Prost, Nigel Mansell, Damon Hill, Jacques Villeneuve and Mika Hakkinen; and currently competing champions Michael Schumacher, Fernando Alonso, Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button.

Junith won the men's group 'A' singles after beating Jayakumar 21-8, 20-22, 21-16, and then also claimed the men's group 'A' doubles partnered with Anand Bose. They outplayed the pair of Madhu Menon and Nahaz Omar 21-16, 21-15 to secure the crown.

Menon made up for his defeat by taking the mixed doubles crown. Teamed up with Jayasree Nair, they defeated Jayakumar and Rahana Sundar 19-21, 21-9, 21-18.

Sunil Samuel won the men's group 'B' singles title after beating Priyan M 21-19, 17-21, 21-16. Tony CK and Sooraj Gopinath then won the men's group 'B' doubles, taking down Baiju Balan and Prashob Raghu 21-15, 18-21, 21-18.

The group 'C' singles title was claimed by Ajesh Kumar, who defeated Abdul Rahman 21-14, 21-10; while Rajesh Pillai and Joy Pauly beat Ajith Kumar and Sudheer Kumar 15-21, 21-18, 21-17 in the group 'C' doubles.

The event saw 76 players from 18 countries battle it out in chilly conditions on the Nick Faldo signature course at Mission Hills in China.

Owen was 12 shots over par while Suzanna was 30. They are two of the Middle East representatives in the finals. Dubai-based brothers Hassan and Ahmed Al Musharrekh from Dubai Creek Golf Club are the others.

A solid front nine start for Hassan positioned him towards the top of the field while his brother Ahmed and Owen were left with work to do on the back nine holes, having experienced some trouble on the fifth and second, respectively.

Suzanna's luck improved slightly on the 13th hole when she achieved a birdie on the 200-yard par three.

Condition

Royal Golf Club golf operations director Phil Jones, who has accompanied the players to China, said: "The Faldo course is in excellent condition as you would expect for a grand final. Due to the recent cold weather, the ground is soft resulting in less roll on the ball - this is ensuring that the 18 holes play their full length and provides competitors with the best possible challenge."

Leading competitors in the boys' field, which is separated into three age categories namely the under-16, under-18 and under-21, include Gavin Green, the 2009 Malaysian Closed Amateur champion, S Chikkarangappa who recently became the youngest-ever winner of the All India Amateur Championship, and 14-year-old Japanese golfer Masamichi Ito who last year became the youngest player to make the cut on the Japan Golf Tour.

The girls' event, which is divided into two categories, under-16 and under-21, also features leading players from both Asia and Europe, with Vietnam's Ngo Bao Nghi and China's Chien Pei-yun and Fan Shi-yang competing, as well as 2009 English and French girls' champion Holly Clyburn, who was the winner of the girls' title at the Faldo Series European Grand Final in Brazil last October.

FINISH SCORES DAY ONE: Hassan Musharrekh +7, Ahmed Musharrekh +9, Daniel Owen +12, Suzanna Hobday +30.

Their victory makes the duo part of a five-way tie for second place on the overall leader board in the six-week long series.

Meanwhile, the club's 2010 lady captain Dena Wales and playing partner Olive Wagstaff took fourth place in this week's competition with a net score of 35.2, putting them in top place on the overall Order of Merit.

BMMI and Johnnie Walker representative Alasdair Lawson presented prizes to the winners at a ceremony held in the Club's Links restaurant.

The Johnnie Walker Monday Madness Night Golf League is open to non-members at a cost of BD20 per night for the nine-hole event.

The penultimate competition will be played in the Team Alliance format on Monday with a 6.30pm shotgun start. To register, contact Michael Imperial on golfevents@theroyalgolfclub.com.

Week four Results: 1 Chris Hurter/Daniel Gizzi (28.9 net), 2 Oliver Brown/Camilla Davidsen (32.7), 3 Rob/Debbie Lane (34), 4 Dena Wales/Olive Wagstaff (35.2), 5 David Blakeborough/Craig McPheator (39.6). Nearest the pins: William Dixon (hole 12) & Val Wright (16).