DUBAI // It is difficult to know which is the master and which the apprentice.
But Kabir Khan and Aaqib Javed will certainly have a few personal scores riding on the outcome when they send their respective sides out against each other at Dubai Sports City tomorrow.
Kabir's Afghanistan side will have to counter the challenge of the side he formerly coached, the UAE, who are now led by Aaqib, in the ACC Trophy semi-final tomorrow.
The two heavyweight nations of this strata of cricket in Asia have been closely intertwined in recent times – not least because Kabir has coached each side twice in the space of five years. When he left the UAE earlier this year for a second time to return to Afghanistan, to helm their World Twenty20 campaign, he recommended Aaqib should apply for the role he had vacated.
He left his Pakistani compatriot with a team in good health. The UAE are unique in this tier of the game in that they have a winning recent record against an Afghanistan side who have otherwise swept all before them.
Last year, the national team had the better of a draw in a four-day match between the two sides.
They then beat the Afghans twice in the World Cup qualifying league, in the 50-over format in which they will be playing tomorrow, in matches in Sharjah that were nominally away matches for the UAE. When Kabir subsequently left, he expressed concern that all the good work he did while he was in the Emirates may now unravel.
He even said he was keen to help his successor.
"I would offer my services to give the new coach my knowledge on all the players and conditions they will face here so they can get up to speed quicker," he said back in January. He may want to revisit that view tomorrow.
Kabir's side are currently re-evaluating how best to progress, following their unfulfilled appearance at the World Twenty20 in Sri Lanka at the end of last month.
Aaqib, too, is still feeling his way in his new role, having endured a testing tour of the Netherlands during the summer, and surprisingly lost the opening game of this tournament to Nepal.
The former Pakistan fast bowler acknowledges he has still yet to see the best of his new side.
"It is against my nature to absorb anything negative," Aaqib said this week.
"If you have something negative to say keep your mouth shut, or say something positive instead.
"It will take some time to understand their [his players'] nature and I don't think I have seen their full potential. Their best has still to come."
The national team had hoped they would avoid Afghanistan, the defending champions, at this stage of the competition on account of having a superior net run rate to Nepal.
However, having analysed the small print of the tournament rules, the head to head result between sides finishing with the same points was decisive.
Aaqib is impressed with the way his players bounced back from the opening day defeat.
"We believe in the abilities of the players," he said. "I never believe in smashing the players. I think you need to motivate them, remind them how good they are and just support them.
"We are a part of it whether they win or lose.
"I don't want to be like a headmaster, who is like another party separate when they lose.
"When we lose, 17 people lose, and we all feel bad together. We get two feelings from that. One, depressing and the other, angry.
"Once you are angry you always bounce back. I am happy the way they have bounced back."
Meanwhile, after navigating the fog of confusion which so often follows the final qualifying stages of international cricket tournaments, Nepal have been pitched into a semi-final against Malaysia in Abu Dhabi tomorrow.
The Nepalese knew victory against a youthful Hong Kong side at the Global Cricket Academy in Dubai today would guarantee them a place in the last four.
However, they were still under the impression they had to better the net run rate of the UAE, who were already through from Group B, to finish first and thus avoid the favourites Afghanistan.
After duly thrashing Hong Kong, the 2008 trophy winners by 125 runs, they were still unaware their opening day win against the UAE was enough to grant them the more appealing semi-final anyway.
With an in-form captain, a thriving fielding unit, as well the likelihood of some strong backing from their Dubai-based supporters, Nepal look well set to advance to a second successive trophy final.
“As a player, it is a privilege to represent your country and when you get there it is your responsibility to perform,” said Paras Khadka, the captain who scored a half-century and took two wickets today.
“All the players are putting their hand up when they are called on to perform.
“It is a matter of focusing on your basics, getting them right and the way we are playing at the moment is what we want to do to move forward.”
While the inexperienced Malaysian side may be unfancied to progress tomorrow, they do have some intimate insider knowledge of the Nepalese side.
Roy Dias, the former Sri Lanka Test player, oversaw the development of many of their players as the long-serving coach of Nepal and is now in charge of Malaysia.
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A new relationship with the old country
Treaty of Friendship between the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the United Arab Emirates
The United kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the United Arab Emirates; Considering that the United Arab Emirates has assumed full responsibility as a sovereign and independent State; Determined that the long-standing and traditional relations of close friendship and cooperation between their peoples shall continue; Desiring to give expression to this intention in the form of a Treaty Friendship; Have agreed as follows:
ARTICLE 1 The relations between the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the United Arab Emirates shall be governed by a spirit of close friendship. In recognition of this, the Contracting Parties, conscious of their common interest in the peace and stability of the region, shall: (a) consult together on matters of mutual concern in time of need; (b) settle all their disputes by peaceful means in conformity with the provisions of the Charter of the United Nations.
ARTICLE 2 The Contracting Parties shall encourage education, scientific and cultural cooperation between the two States in accordance with arrangements to be agreed. Such arrangements shall cover among other things: (a) the promotion of mutual understanding of their respective cultures, civilisations and languages, the promotion of contacts among professional bodies, universities and cultural institutions; (c) the encouragement of technical, scientific and cultural exchanges.
ARTICLE 3 The Contracting Parties shall maintain the close relationship already existing between them in the field of trade and commerce. Representatives of the Contracting Parties shall meet from time to time to consider means by which such relations can be further developed and strengthened, including the possibility of concluding treaties or agreements on matters of mutual concern.
ARTICLE 4 This Treaty shall enter into force on today’s date and shall remain in force for a period of ten years. Unless twelve months before the expiry of the said period of ten years either Contracting Party shall have given notice to the other of its intention to terminate the Treaty, this Treaty shall remain in force thereafter until the expiry of twelve months from the date on which notice of such intention is given.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF the undersigned have signed this Treaty.
DONE in duplicate at Dubai the second day of December 1971AD, corresponding to the fifteenth day of Shawwal 1391H, in the English and Arabic languages, both texts being equally authoritative.
Signed
Geoffrey Arthur Sheikh Zayed
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.”
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