India’s Anirban Lahiri lifted home spirits when he posted a sparkling seven-under-par 65 to take the first-round lead at the SAIL-SBI Open in New Delhi.

Canada’s Ron Harvey Jnr carded a 66 to take second place while Sweden’s Rikard Karlberg signed for a 67 to take third place at the Delhi Golf Club on Wednesday.

Australia’s Scott Hend, who is seeking his second Asian Tour win, returned with a 68 to take a share of fourth place alongside four Indians at the $US300,000 ($A282,000) full field Asian Tour event.

Lahiri was clearly delighted with his opening performance as he had previously said he found the playing conditions at the Delhi club tough.

“I’m just happy that I played well today and I hope that I can just come out tomorrow and play another solid round of golf,” he said.

Meanwhile Harvey, who played his way into the region’s elite circuit by finishing in tied-16th at Qualifying School last month, was happy that his rookie season was getting off to a good start.

“I played really conservative today and it’s a lot easier when you hit onto the fairways all day,” said the 28-year-old, who had earlier taken the morning round lead.

The SAIL-SBI Open is the second event scheduled to be played in India on the Asian Tour this season, following the Avantha Masters, which wrapped up on Sunday.