Lowest seeded, last to qualify, and starting out against the tournament favourites, the UAE know they have their work cut out at the Cricket World Cup Qualifier in Zimbabwe.
Sri Lanka, their first opponents at Queens Sports Club in Bulawayo on Monday, are one of two sides in the event to have won the World Cup previously, the other being West Indies.
They have a side packed with experience of international cricket’s top flight, and, in Wanindu Hasaranga, one of the most coveted players in the short formats.
Rather than feel trepidation, though, the UAE’s players know the fixture brings opportunity.
They faced Sri Lanka last year at the T20 World Cup. As the form book dictated, they were soundly beaten that night in Geelong, but it still provided arguably the most memorable moment in the history of the UAE national team.
Karthik Meiyappan, the young leg-spinner, dismissed Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Charith Asalanka and Dasun Shanaka in successive deliveries to become the first UAE player ever to take a World Cup hat-trick.
“They are definitely happy memories, but it is a completely different format we are playing this time around,” Meiyappan said.
“In 50 overs, the margin of error for bowlers is less, so I will have to be on my A-game against them. They are happy memories, but I will need to be on my toes against them this time, too.”
Meiyappan had a reminder about that moment in the final match of the UAE’s preparatory series against West Indies in Sharjah last week.
The tourists were marching inexorably to a 3-0 series clean sweep, but Meiyappan at least delayed the inevitable when he removed Keacy Carty and Kavem Hodge in successive balls.
Raymon Reifer thwarted his attempt at adding a one-day international hat-trick to his T20 World Cup one, but Meiyappan was still buoyed.
“All the boys were talking it up, right after I got my second,” Meiyappan said.
“They were saying, ‘Oh here we go, another chance like in the World Cup.’ Against Sri Lanka, on the third ball, it was completely out of my mind that it was a hat-trick ball.
“This time it was in my head. I was a little ahead of myself, but it was a nice memory to have at that stage.”
The West Indies assignment was a tough one for the UAE. They will start their Qualifier campaign on the back of four losses against the side from the Caribbean, with only the relief of one win against Nepal in a warm up game in Harare.
Meiyappan says the players are not discouraged, though.
“If you look at the series we had, we played pretty well in patches, but it is important for us to work on being more consistent,” Meiyappan said.
“Vriitya [Aravind] had a good series. Aayan [Khan] bowled pretty well throughout, the fast bowlers bowled well. Ali Naseer, making his debut, got two 50s.
“We have pretty good players going around, but as a team and a unit we have to come together and put up a collective performance.
“Going to Zimbabwe, it didn’t affect our confidence too much. Playing against such a team in Sharjah, that too as a day-night game, it is pretty tough.
“Going to Zimbabwe, we think the conditions will suit us even more. We need to back ourselves.”
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Romarinho, Brazil
Lassana Diarra, France
Sardor Rashidov, Uzbekistan
Mbark Boussoufa, Morocco
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The major Hashd factions linked to Iran:
Badr Organisation: Seen as the most militarily capable faction in the Hashd. Iraqi Shiite exiles opposed to Saddam Hussein set up the group in Tehran in the early 1980s as the Badr Corps under the supervision of the Iran Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC). The militia exalts Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei but intermittently cooperated with the US military.
Saraya Al Salam (Peace Brigade): Comprised of former members of the officially defunct Mahdi Army, a militia that was commanded by Iraqi cleric Moqtada Al Sadr and fought US and Iraqi government and other forces between 2004 and 2008. As part of a political overhaul aimed as casting Mr Al Sadr as a more nationalist and less sectarian figure, the cleric formed Saraya Al Salam in 2014. The group’s relations with Iran has been volatile.
Kataeb Hezbollah: The group, which is fighting on behalf of the Bashar Al Assad government in Syria, traces its origins to attacks on US forces in Iraq in 2004 and adopts a tough stance against Washington, calling the United States “the enemy of humanity”.
Asaeb Ahl Al Haq: An offshoot of the Mahdi Army active in Syria. Asaeb Ahl Al Haq’s leader Qais al Khazali was a student of Mr Al Moqtada’s late father Mohammed Sadeq Al Sadr, a prominent Shiite cleric who was killed during Saddam Hussein’s rule.
Harakat Hezbollah Al Nujaba: Formed in 2013 to fight alongside Mr Al Assad’s loyalists in Syria before joining the Hashd. The group is seen as among the most ideological and sectarian-driven Hashd militias in Syria and is the major recruiter of foreign fighters to Syria.
Saraya Al Khorasani: The ICRG formed Saraya Al Khorasani in the mid-1990s and the group is seen as the most ideologically attached to Iran among Tehran’s satellites in Iraq.
(Source: The Wilson Centre, the International Centre for the Study of Radicalisation)
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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
F1 The Movie
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Day 2, Dubai Test: At a glance
Moment of the day Pakistan’s effort in the field had hints of shambles about it. The wheels were officially off when Wahab Riaz lost his run up and aborted the delivery four times in a row. He re-measured his run, jogged in for two practice goes. Then, when he was finally ready to go, he bailed out again. It was a total cringefest.
Stat of the day – 139.5 Yasir Shah has bowled 139.5 overs in three innings so far in this Test series. Judged by his returns, the workload has not withered him. He has 14 wickets so far, and became history’s first spinner to take five-wickets in an innings in five consecutive Tests. Not bad for someone whose fitness was in question before the series.
The verdict Stranger things have happened, but it is going to take something extraordinary for Pakistan to keep their undefeated record in Test series in the UAE in tact from this position. At least Shan Masood and Sami Aslam have made a positive start to the salvage effort.
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The Gandhi Murder
- 71 - Years since the death of MK Gandhi, also christened India's Father of the Nation
- 34 - Nationalities featured in the film The Gandhi Murder
- 7 - million dollars, the film's budget
