Chadha is on the top of the leader-board with a overall score of 16-under 200 while Shrestha is three strokes behind the defending champion. Shrestha was tied for the second place with two Indians -- Ajeetesh Sandhu and S Chikkarangappa -- at 203.[break]
Chadha led the field by three strokes despite suffering a bogey each on the last two holes as Chikkarangappa double-bogeyed on the finishing hole.
Chadha started the day with a birdie on the first hole and added three more on the third, seventh and ninth holes to complete the front nine at four-under 32. However, he faltered on the back nine as he suffered bogeys on the 10th, 17th and 18th holes. "I was not bothered about the lead as I played my own game," said the leader. "I would like to win the title and shall try to keep the ball in play," said the 21-year-old.
Shrestha, who is looking to be only the second Nepali golfer after Deepak Thapa Magar to win the title, started the day saving pars on the first two holes and carded birdies on the third, fourth and seventh holes to complete the front nine at three-under 33. On the back nine, he carded birdies on the 11th, 12th and 16th holes but suffered bogeys on the 15th and 17th holes.
"I know I am in with a chance to lift the title. I had come pretty close in the last few editions but this time I shall give my best to win," said Shrestha, who has been playing in the Professional Golf Tour of India (PGTI) regularly since last year.
Shamim Khan shot the best round of the day with seven-under 65 to share the fifth position with Anirban Lahiri, who produced the second-best card of 66, and Om Prakash Chouhan. The trio was six shots off the leader at 204. Gaurav Ghei and Mohammad Sanju were tied for eighth at 205.
Amongst the other Nepali pros, Umesh Nagarkoti shot a third round of 71 to be four-under for the tournament and was tied for the 37th place while Toran Bikram Shahi shared the 40th position at 213. Yelamber Singh Adhikari, the only other pro from Nepal to make the cut, carded level par 216 for three days and was tied for the 47th position.
Meanwhile, Indian golfer Shankar Das, one of the golfers in the second position until the second round, was disqualified on technical ground.
The winner of the tournament, jointly sanctioned by PGTI and Nepal Professional Golfers Association (NPGA), will receive Rs 775,920. The total prize money of the tournament is Rs 4.8 million.
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