Kuala Lumpur: Jazz Janewattananond shot an even-par 72 in the second round of the Maybank Championship to stay in contention for the title.
The Thai had a two-day total of 138 and was tied for fourth with the likes of Ernie Els and David Lipsky at the Saujana Golf and Country Club.
They were two strokes behind leader Thomas Pieters who fired a 69 for 136.
The Belgian was one shot ahead of Indonesia's Danny Masrin (68) and Spain's Nacho Elvira (72) who were on 137 in the US$3 million event.
Pieters, who is one half of the Belgium's World Cup of Golf winning duo in Melbourne last November, started the day two shots off the lead in sixth place.
He suffered an early setback with a bogey on two but responded well with four birdies on holes four, 10, 13 and 16 to take his place atop the leaderboard.
"I struggled off the tee early on and at the end it was a lot better. It didn't feel like a good day to me. I made the best of what I had. I gave myself a lot of chances but I couldn't seem to get the ball in the hole," Pieters said.
"I birdied 16, the par-three, it was a nice putt. But other than that I felt like I was missing putts all over the place. I tried not to over read the putt on 16. When you miss a couple of putts you try not to read too much into it. I just put it down, looked once, and gave it a go."
Thailand's Prom Meesawat was also in the heat of the battle but he returned unscathed after firing a 71 to stay close to the leaders in a share of 11th place on 139.
Prom said: "I'm very happy I'm in contention especially knowing that this golf course is not an easy one. You have to be physically fit too as it gets really hot in the day.
"You have to manage yourself very well. I've played really good golf today. I tried to put the ball in a good position but some pin positions can be very tricky here if you fail to put it on the right spot.
"You're going to get into trouble. The key to doing well for me this week is my putting. I just try to do the same things like what I've done the last two days. I also want to enjoy my moment here with my friends and family as the atmosphere here is unbelievable."