McCoy joins Amir and Afridi in long list of left-arm quicks to rattle India

Indian batsmen's vulnerability against left-arm fast bowlers is no secret. Over the years, left-armers have unsettled India, especially in white-ball matches – often in crunch games.

Such setbacks have increased in recent years, coinciding with a rise of quality left-arm quicks in the international arena.

On Monday, West Indies left-armer Obed McCoy decimated Rohit Sharma's team in the second T20 in Basseterre, picking up a scarcely believable 6-17 to dismiss the Indians for 138. Those were the best figures in the format against India and the seventh best in international cricket.

That effort was enough to secure victory, even though India's bowlers took the match to the last over where a no-ball by Avesh Khan and subsequent free hit settled matters as West Indies won by five wickets to level the series at 1-1.

It was the latest match-winning effort by a left-arm quick against India in white-ball cricket.

The most famous ones are by Pakistan fast bowlers Mohammad Amir and Shaheen Afridi.

Amir rocked India's top order in the 2017 Champions Trophy final where he sent back Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and Shikhar Dhawan in a devastating opening spell as the men in green lifted the trophy with a thumping 180-run win.

Then in the T20 World Cup in the UAE last year, Afridi blew away India's top order, accounting for Sharma and Kohli again as Babar Azam's team finally registered their first World Cup win over India by 10 wickets.

There have been many others. Last month, England left-arm quick Reece Topley bowled a career best 6-24 to set up a 100-run win at Lord's.

Bangladesh left-arm fast bowler Mustafizur Rahman has five five-wicket hauls in ODIs. Three of them are against the Indians.

Former England captain and commentator Nasser Hussain believes India have a problem against left-arm pacer.

“I have a feeling India have a problem against left-armers in all formats. I think of Shaheen Afridi in the T20 World Cup and Mohammad Amir in the Champions Trophy final in 2017 and Reece Topley in this series,” Hussain said.

McCoy's latest effort against India has only reinforced the belief.

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.”

Like a Fading Shadow

Antonio Muñoz Molina

Translated from the Spanish by Camilo A. Ramirez

Tuskar Rock Press (pp. 310)

While you're here

Hussein Ibish: There are reasons for Democrats and Republicans to be happy

Rashmee Roshan Lall: Who are the women driving Joe Biden's success?

VEZEETA PROFILE

Date started: 2012

Founder: Amir Barsoum

Based: Dubai, UAE

Sector: HealthTech / MedTech

Size: 300 employees

Funding: $22.6 million (as of September 2018)

Investors: Technology Development Fund, Silicon Badia, Beco Capital, Vostok New Ventures, Endeavour Catalyst, Crescent Enterprises’ CE-Ventures, Saudi Technology Ventures and IFC

'Shakuntala Devi'

Starring: Vidya Balan, Sanya Malhotra

Director: Anu Menon

Rating: Three out of five stars

Coronavirus: US postpones summit with ASEAN leaders

MATCH INFO

UAE Division 1

Abu Dhabi Harlequins 12-24 Abu Dhabi Saracens

Sly%20Cooper%20and%20the%20Thievius%20Raccoonus

%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDeveloper%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Sucker%20Punch%20Productions%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPublisher%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Sony%20Computer%20Entertainment%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EConsole%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20PlayStation%202%20to%205%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%205%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A