England, under Ben Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum, have enjoyed unprecedented success in the Test format. Getty
England, under Ben Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum, have enjoyed unprecedented success in the Test format. Getty
England, under Ben Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum, have enjoyed unprecedented success in the Test format. Getty
England, under Ben Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum, have enjoyed unprecedented success in the Test format. Getty

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Cricket

Depleted New Zealand face red-hot England as 'Bazball' takes centre stage

Kiwi all-rounder Kyle Jamieson ruled out due to stress fracture ahead of day-night Test in Mount Maunganui on Thursday

The National

February 14, 2023

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A weakened New Zealand side have the unenviable task of trying to counter England's bold new style of playing Test cricket when a two-match series begins in Mount Maunganui on Thursday.

The day-night Test will kick off the tour in which Ben Stokes's team will look to conquer another overseas territory with their now famous "Bazball" brand of cricket.

England have won nine of 10 Tests since New Zealander Brendon McCullum took charge as head coach, with the Black Caps becoming the first to suffer under the new style of all-out attacking cricket last year.

Then, England swept the home series 3-0 against New Zealand in June as the team chased down more than 275 in the final innings of all three Tests. They did one better against India in a one-off Test, chasing down 377 with ease. They then secured a 2-1 series win against South Africa.

The icing on the cake for Stokes' team was their historic 3-0 series win in Pakistan last year, which capped a stunning turnaround for a side that had earlier won just one out of 17 Tests.

What makes the task for the hosts even more difficult is their lack of resources. New Zealand drew both of their most recent Tests in Pakistan and fast bowler Tim Southee will have to lead an inexperienced attack without pace bowling all-rounder Kyle Jamieson, who has been ruled out with a stress fracture of the back. Seamer Matt Henry, who is expecting the birth of his first child, will also miss out.

Former pace spearhead Trent Boult has been overlooked as a replacement because he opted out of his national contract last year. With seam bowling all-rounder Colin de Grandhomme also lost to the lucrative global T20 circuit, selectors are left with only rookie quicks to lend support to Southee and Neil Wagner. Blair Tickner, and one of either Jacob Duffy or Scott Kuggeleijn, are expected to debut on Thursday.

It has been a steep fall for the Kiwis, who were the inaugural World Test Championship winners in 2021.

"It does look like a bad bit of news," coach Gary Stead said of Jamieson's injury.

"We've tried to be reasonably conservative with Kyle right through his rehab process, to make sure we gave him the best chance of coming back. He was tracking beautifully and it came as a real surprise to us."

Both teams' preparations have been disrupted by Cyclone Gabrielle, which washed out two training session and caused devastation in the North Island.

The day-night match is expected to begin on time on Thursday, despite the weather. A few showers are forecast for Mount Maunganui on the first day, before clearing.

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1. Domestic VAT refund amendments: request your refund within five years

If a business does not apply for the refund on time, they lose their credit.

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Businesses should continue preparing for the implementation of e-invoicing in the UAE, with 2026 a preparation and transition period ahead of phased mandatory adoption. 

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Tax authorities are increasingly using data already available across multiple filings to identify audit risks. 

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Transfer pricing enforcement, which refers to the practice of establishing prices for internal transactions between related entities, is expected to broaden in scope. The UAE will shortly open the possibility to negotiate advance pricing agreements, or essentially rulings for transfer pricing purposes. 

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Recent amendments also introduce a default five-year limitation period for tax audits and assessments, subject to specific statutory exceptions. While the standard audit and assessment period is five years, this may be extended to up to 15 years in cases involving fraud or tax evasion. 

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Many multinational groups will begin to feel the practical effect of the Domestic Minimum Top-Up Tax (DMTT), the UAE's implementation of the OECD’s global minimum tax under Pillar 2. While the rules apply for financial years starting on or after January 1, 2025, it is 2026 that marks the transition to an operational phase.

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Tax authorities are expected to continue strengthening the enforcement of economic substance and Country-by-Country (CbC) reporting frameworks. In the UAE, these regimes are increasingly being used as risk-assessment tools, providing tax authorities with a comprehensive view of multinational groups’ global footprints and enabling them to assess whether profits are aligned with real economic activity. 

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Greed

Greedy investors trade beyond their means, open more positions than usual or hold on to positions too long to chase an even greater gain. “All too often, they incur a heavy loss and may even wipe out the profit already made.

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Fear

The risk of making a loss can cloud decision-making. “This can cause you to close out a position too early, or miss out on a profit by being too afraid to open a trade,” he says.

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While all traders need hope to start trading, excessive optimism can backfire. Too many traders hold on to a losing trade because they believe that it will reverse its trend and become profitable.

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Traders can get annoyed when the markets have behaved in unexpected ways and generates losses or fails to deliver anticipated gains.

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Boredom

Too many investors buy and sell because they want something to do. They are trading as entertainment, rather than in the hope of making money. As well as making bad decisions, the extra dealing charges eat into returns.

Tip: Open an online demo account and get your thrills without risking real money.

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Plan to boost public schools

A major shake-up of government-run schools was rolled out across the country in 2017. Known as the Emirati School Model, it placed more emphasis on maths and science while also adding practical skills to the curriculum.

It was accompanied by the promise of a Dh5 billion investment, over six years, to pay for state-of-the-art infrastructure improvements.

Aspects of the school model will be extended to international private schools, the education minister has previously suggested.

Recent developments have also included the introduction of moral education - which public and private schools both must teach - along with reform of the exams system and tougher teacher licensing requirements.

More coverage from the Future Forum
Retirement funds heavily invested in equities at a risky time

Pension funds in growing economies in Asia, Latin America and the Middle East have a sharply higher percentage of assets parked in stocks, just at a time when trade tensions threaten to derail markets.

Retirement money managers in 14 geographies now allocate 40 per cent of their assets to equities, an 8 percentage-point climb over the past five years, according to a Mercer survey released last week that canvassed government, corporate and mandatory pension funds with almost $5 trillion in assets under management. That compares with about 25 per cent for pension funds in Europe.

The escalating trade spat between the US and China has heightened fears that stocks are ripe for a downturn. With tensions mounting and outcomes driven more by politics than economics, the S&P 500 Index will be on course for a “full-scale bear market” without Federal Reserve interest-rate cuts, Citigroup’s global macro strategy team said earlier this week.

The increased allocation to equities by growth-market pension funds has come at the expense of fixed-income investments, which declined 11 percentage points over the five years, according to the survey.

Hong Kong funds have the highest exposure to equities at 66 per cent, although that’s been relatively stable over the period. Japan’s equity allocation jumped 13 percentage points while South Korea’s increased 8 percentage points.

The money managers are also directing a higher portion of their funds to assets outside of their home countries. On average, foreign stocks now account for 49 per cent of respondents’ equity investments, 4 percentage points higher than five years ago, while foreign fixed-income exposure climbed 7 percentage points to 23 per cent. Funds in Japan, South Korea, Malaysia and Taiwan are among those seeking greater diversification in stocks and fixed income.

• Bloomberg

 

 

Updated: February 14, 2023, 12:11 PM
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