England got back on track after the setback in the opening match of the T20 series by thrashing Pakistan by 45 runs in the second match in Leeds on Sunday.
Jos Buttler, returning to the side as captain in place of the rested Eoin Morgan, top-scored for with 59 as England posted 200. Liam Livingstone (38 off 23 balls) and all-rounder Moeen Ali (36 from 16) made sizeable contributions to hand the visitors a target of 10 runs an over.
In reply, Pakistan seemed on track at 71-1 in the ninth over before losing five wickets for 34 runs. They eventually screeched to a halt at 155-9.
Moeen delivered with ball, picking up the scalps of Mohammad Hafeez and Fakhar Zaman in the middle over to finish with 2-32. Seamer Saqib Mahmood (3-33) and spinner Adil Rashid (2-30) did the rest in a clinical win. Leg-spinner Matt Parkinson was the most economical bowler on display, picking up 1-25 from his four overs.
Captain Buttler was particularly pleased with the way his spinners controlled the innings.
"Rashid's been fantastic for a long time and Parky has earned his chance, they bowled fantastically well in tandem," Buttler said.
"It was great to be back and nice to contribute. We asked a lot of the guys and they improved on the other night. Two great games and I'm sure the decider will be as well."
Pakistan started the chase started steadily, Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan adding 50 inside six overs.
Moeen's introduction in the sixth over cost England 14 and when he was quickly shuffled for Rashid, the Yorkshireman struck at the first attempt. Tossing it up and turning it past Sohaib Maqsood's outside edge, he allowed Buttler to complete the stumping.
Rashid and Parkinson proceeded to strangle the run-rate, killing the tempo as their first six overs allowed a stingy 35.
Pakistan captain Babar said his team gave away too many runs. "We gave away too many runs, perhaps 30 too many, and weren't able to carry through the momentum we built at the top," Azam said.
"Lost my wicket at a crucial time, but we back our ability to chase down a total because we've done it in the past."
Earlier, after the hosts lost Jason Roy and Dawid Malan in the opening three overs, Buttler and Ali restored order with a quick 67-run partnership.
Ali eventually fell for 36, scooping fast bowler Mohammad Hasnain to mid-off, but Buttler accelerated the England run rate alongside the hero of the last match Livingstone.
Buttler picked out mid-off for Hasnain's second wicket of the innings, but Livingstone, fresh from scoring England's fastest ever hundred, went on to produce another entertaining innings.
Livingstone managed the biggest hit of the day, hitting Haris Rauf's delivery straight over the newly built Football Stand.
The right-handed batsman was run out for 38 off 23 balls before the lower order added another 35 off the last four overs to take England's score to 200 for the second consecutive game - this time to secure victory.
Both teams now head to Manchester for the series decider on Tuesday.
Gothia Cup 2025
4,872 matches
1,942 teams
116 pitches
76 nations
26 UAE teams
15 Lebanese teams
2 Kuwaiti teams
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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.”
Winners
Best Men's Player of the Year: Kylian Mbappe (PSG)
Maradona Award for Best Goal Scorer of the Year: Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich)
TikTok Fans’ Player of the Year: Robert Lewandowski
Top Goal Scorer of All Time: Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United)
Best Women's Player of the Year: Alexia Putellas (Barcelona)
Best Men's Club of the Year: Chelsea
Best Women's Club of the Year: Barcelona
Best Defender of the Year: Leonardo Bonucci (Juventus/Italy)
Best Goalkeeper of the Year: Gianluigi Donnarumma (PSG/Italy)
Best Coach of the Year: Roberto Mancini (Italy)
Best National Team of the Year: Italy
Best Agent of the Year: Federico Pastorello
Best Sporting Director of the Year: Txiki Begiristain (Manchester City)
Player Career Award: Ronaldinho
