Johannesburg, Apr 15: Golfer Diksha Dagar will spearhead a five-member Indian contingent at the Joburg Ladies Open, co-sanctioned by the Ladies European Tour and the Sunshine Ladies Tour, starting here on Thursday.
Diksha, currently in the top 10 of the LET’s Order of Merit with two top-10 finishes from six starts, will be joined by fellow Indians Avani Prashanth, Pranavi Urs, Hitaashee Bakshi and Tvesa Malik, a former winner on the Sunshine Ladies Tour.
Making her debut in South Africa, Hitaashee has rediscovered form after four missed cuts, finishing tied ninth at the Australian WPGA Championship, the fourth event of the Australian swing.
Avani, after a good rookie season in 2025, has had a modest season with three cuts in five starts, but her best finish had been a tied-39th at the PIF Saudi Ladies International at the start of the season.
Tvesa, who lost her card last season, will be making her first LET start in 2026, and a good week will give her confidence for the upcoming Investec Women’s South African Open at Royal Cape.
Tvesa will be the first Indian to tee off alongside Ana Dawn of Isle of Mann and Kaiyuree Moodley of South Africa, while Pranavi will play with Emma Spitz of Austria and Marta Martin of Spain.
Diksha will tee off with Luna Sobron Galmes of Spain. Avani plays with Alice Hewson of England and Patricie Mackova of Czech Republic and Hitaashee has been grouped with Alexandra Försterling and England’s Annabell Fuller.
There will be a lot of focus on local golfer Casandra Alexander as the Order of Merit leader goes in pursuit of a popular home win. Casandra has made a hot start to 2026 on the LET season picking up four top-six finishes, including two runners-up spots, to lead the season-long standings.
She tees up as the highest-ranked player in the field this week and is excited for her homecoming event, which she won in 2021 when the Joburg Ladies Open was only a Sunshine Ladies Tour tournament.
The past year has seen Casandra elevate her game to the new level as she became a winner on the LET at the Tipsport Czech Ladies Open before breaking into the world’s top-50. (PTI)
