It was a final birdie for the Spaniard which secured him an early tie for the lead, finishing the day at six under alongside the Scotsman. The pair are one ahead of Italy's Federico Colombo who is alone in third place.

Cañizares began at the tenth and secured two birdies before the turn, making up four more shots in the next six holes. A final closing birdie negated his only bogey.

“It’s always nice to finish on a high like that,” the former Russian Open winner told reporters.

“I didn’t hit a great wedge shot into the green so it was nice to sink the putt.

“Hopefully I can keep this going and be in contention going into the final round.”

Meanwhile Whiteford was out in 35, but made five birdies after the turn to finish ahead and improve his chances of winning his first European Tour title.

“It was the first time I’ve hit the fairways in months,” he said.

“I hit a lot more drivers than people usually do out there and just took advantage of the course and bullied it a little. It can bite you easily though if you’re not careful. I had a bad one down the last but apart from that it’s mainly the driving that was loads better today.”

A six-strong group are two shots off the early leaders in joint fourth place, including three of the pre-tournament favourites: Frenchman Gregory Havret, Thonchai Jaidee of Thailand and Wales' Jamie Donaldson.