Green and Storm joint leaders in Abu Dhabi

Abu Dhabi: After Thursday's hailstorm it was a 'Green-Storm' that hit the National Course on Friday as Australian Richard Green and Englishman Graeme Storm emerged joint leaders, although the second round of the Abu Dhabi Golf Championship is yet to be completed.

Storm recorded the best round of this edition with an eight under par 64 to finish with 11 under par after his second round. Green, playing in the same group, cruised along to a smart round of seven under 65 which swept him to 11 under par, level with the Liverpool-supporting Storm.

Earlier in the morning, English duo Paul Casey and Anthony Wall took over from the Swedes with impressive rounds that helped them finish just one shot behind the leaders.

In the unfinished pack, one of the first day leaders, Mikael Lundberg of Sweden, has two more holes to play and could make it a three-way tie at the top if he birdies the final two holes.

Johan Edfors, the other Swede who started as leader yesterday, finished with a nine under par and shares third place with Ireland's young gun Rory McIlroy and Brett Rumford of Australia.

Green, who became the first left-hander since 1975 to win on The European Tour when in 1997 he got the better of Ian Woosnam and Greg Norman in a play-off to win the Dubai Desert Classic, started with three successive birdies and picked up three more shots on the front nine. However a steady back nine display earned him just one more shot but helped him share the lead with Storm.

"I had it on a roll there and I didn't think I could do a thing wrong. I'm very happy with the spot I'm in and going into the weekend, it looks good," said Green.

Unlike Green, Storm sizzled on the back nine with an eagle and four birdies to add to the three shots he picked in the front nine. But a bogey on the 14th meant Storm fell short of compatriot Philip Archer's second lowest score of 63 here in 2007.

"It's a great golf course. I'm reading the green a little bit better than I did last year. I'm driving the ball pretty straight too," said Storm.