Dubai Desert Classic:Rory McIlroy might be a force of nature, but even the tyro could not defeat Mother Nature or the vagaries of human metabolism during a sensational second round performance in the Dubai Desert Classic.

The 17-year-old amateur from Holywood, Co Down, thundered out of the blocks, rattling pins and picking up two birdies and an eagle three in his first four holes on the back nine at the Emirates Golf Club to move into the top 10 on seven under par.

Having started on the 10th, the world's third-ranked amateur was preparing to drain a 12-footer for birdie at the 16th that would have put him eight under par for the tournament.

But the hooter signalled the imminent arrival of a vicious thunderstorm that delayed proceedings for over two hours, and when he resumed it seemed he had lost all the impetus and adrenaline he had built up.

McIlroy came back out and duly missed his birdie putt, failed to birdie the par five 18th, and then dropped a shot at the tricky first hole to lose the distinction he had held of being the only player in the 120-strong field without a blemish on his card.

A birdie at the par five third and a solid par at the short fourth left him sharing 14th place on seven under par with five holes of his second round remaining when played was suspended for the day due to fading light.

Watched by his parents and a handful of well-wishers from his club, McIlroy looks a racing certainty to make the projected three-under-par cut. But he can consider himself unlucky to remain stuck on seven under.

Set to resume battle with 47 others at 7.45am today, the teenager has his sights firmly set on picking up at least one more shot over the tough front nine and move up from an overnight share of 14th place into the top 10.

"I had so much momentum going and to have them stop it when I was on the 16th was a pity," McIlroy said of the delay. "I had a lot of momentum going and it kind of stopped when the rain came, and that annoyed me a bit. I didn't have quite the same adrenalin rush afterwards. I felt I was flying at four under for the day.

"If play hadn't been called I more than likely would have holed that putt (on the 16th) and gone on from there. It was a bit unfortunate I suppose.

"It's never happened to me before, but overall I played really good on that back nine. I am up there now and it would be great if I played as well tomorrow and got myself into the top 10 position. I am tied 14th at the minute. That's pretty good for an amateur."

McIlroy immediately got into red figures at the par five 10th, where he slightly thinned his wedge shot but finished six feet away after clattering into the flagstick.

The real fireworks began at the 550-yard 13th, where McIlroy cut a 252-yard three-wood to just eight feet and rolled in the putt to get to six under.

"I was in between my two-iron, my rescue club and my three-wood, so I just hit a 30-yard cut with a three-wood to eight feet and rolled that in," he said.

"I hit a really good three-wood off the tee at 14, and hit the pin with a seven-iron again from about 160 - it was a little mud ball, went a bit left to right, hit the pin and finished five feet away and I holed that as well."

A superb iron shot to 12 feet at the 16th left McIlroy with a brilliant chance to get to eight under. But the hooter went, and after spending the delay watching TV and texting friends, he wasn't in the same mode after the restart.

At the par five 18th he missed the green left with a rescue wood, and then dropped a shot at the first where he splashed out to five feet from a greenside bunker but missed the par putt.

Up until that point, McIlroy was the only player in the field without a bogey on his card, but after missing a good birdie chance from seven feet at the second, he skimmed a wedge to four feet at the long third and holed the putt to get back to seven under.

A solid par at the par-three fourth left him just seven behind leader Ross Fisher and one better than his mentor Darren Clarke, who fired a 70 to finish the day on six under.

Paul McGinley finished with a bogey six at the 13th before bad light stopped play and is on four under par, a shot clear of Damien McGrane after a 69.

Gary Murphy will miss the cut after a second 72, but Peter Lawrie will have to sweat it out this morning on two under par - one shot outside the projected cut.