Captains Els and Tiger Woods will complete their respective International and US teams late next week, adding four captain’s picks to the eight players to have already qualified for the respective teams.

Woods’s win at the ZOZO Championship in Japan clears the way for the eight-time Presidents Cup representative to make his return to the US team for the first time since 2013 at Royal Melbourne Golf Club from December 9.

Now ranked No.7 in the world, Woods has the luxury of rounding out his team with the likes of Tony Finau, US Open champion Gary Woodland, Rickie Fowler, Patrick Reed, Kevin Na, Jordan Spieth or Bubba Watson, among others.

Although he no longer has to ponder picking himself, Els has a more problematic puzzle to solve but in Lahiri, Parry believes Els has a player who will rise to the occasion.

A captain’s selection under Nick Price at Liberty National in 2017 where he picked up 1.5 points from his three matches, Lahiri shot 66 in the opening round of the Bermuda Championship but withdrew after the second round with a side strain.

His best finish on the PGA TOUR in 2019 was a tie for 30th at the Valspar Championship in March but Parry has seen enough to put his faith in the Indian star.

“I would pick Anirban Lahiri. I think he’s an unbelievable talent and he would play really well in that scenario,” Parry said.

“He’s a really nice guy, would bring a lot of energy into the team and can flat-out play.

“I played with him in Fiji a few years ago. I’ve seen some of his results and I know how far he hits it.

“That’s what you need to have to play well around Royal Melbourne.

“He brings a really good energy as far as his attitude to playing.”

In addition to endorsing the likely selection of Aussie No.3 Jason Day, Parry is also pushing for an additional Aussie with experience at Royal Melbourne.

Winner of the 2005 Heineken Classic at Royal Melbourne in addition to his Presidents Cup heroics 21 years ago, Parry urged Els to consider course familiarity when he makes his four selections.

“I would pick Jason, definitely, and I’d be looking to another Aussie player too, someone like Aaron Baddeley who has experience of playing Royal Melbourne,” said Parry.

“If his game is in a reasonable state I’d have no problems picking Aaron.

“Someone with experience of playing Royal Melbourne would really help. If you’ve got two players similar in terms of the world rankings but one has won a lot of tournaments and has experience at Royal Melbourne, I’d be going those players every time.”

The highest-ranked International-eligible players not among those to have already qualified are Korean pair Sungjae Im and Byeong Hun An, Canadians Adam Hadwin and Corey Conners, Japan’s Shugo Imahira, Chilean Joaquin Niemann and South African Erik Van Rooyen.

Rather than world rankings, however, Parry says the best iron players will be the best fit for Royal Melbourne.

“Really good iron players, that’s what they’ll be going for,” Parry said.

“You really have to control your iron shots going into the green and place it under the hole the whole time.

“It doesn’t matter if you simply hit the green. If you hit the green and you’re in the wrong spot, guess what? You’re three and four-putting.

“You need to have a very good short game to play well around Royal but I’d say the irons are going to put you in a really good position.”

Els will finalise the International team via teleconference on Thursday at 12pm AEDT with Woods to complete the US side at 1pm AEDT on Friday in a live stream on the Presidents Cup and PGA TOUR platforms.

International team qualifiers: Hideki Matsuyama, Adam Scott, Louis Oosthuizen, Marc Leishman, Abraham Ancer, Haotong Li, Cameron Smith, CT Pan.

US team qualifiers: Dustin Johnson, Justin Thomas, Brooks Koepka, Matt Kuchar, Xander Schauffele, Webb Simpson, Bryson DeChambeau, Patrick Cantlay.