Rishabh Pant ticked many boxes in what was his first outing in an India jersey since his serious accident in 2022 as he hit a sparkling fifty on a difficult New York surface during a T20 World Cup warm-up match against Bangladesh on Saturday.
Batting first on an unknown surface at the Nassau County International Stadium, India's makeshift opening combination of captain Rohit Sharma and Sanju Samson struggled to get going against the Bangladesh bowlers; Virat Kohli did not take part in the match as he had landed in New York only on Friday.
The surface offered purchase to the fast and slow bowlers, which helped the Tigers keep a lid on the scoring for most part.
Samson departed for a six-ball one while captain Sharma scored at a little over run a ball in his 23 from 19 balls. It was Pant, promoted up to number three, who held the innings together. He got the ball rolling by smashing successive sixes off Shakib Al Hasan. Pant reached 53 from 32 balls and looked good for a lot more before he was retired out.
T20 World Cup jerseys
Suryakumar Yadav hit a brisk 31 from 18 balls but the designated power hitter of the squad – Shivam Dube – could barely put bat to ball as he laboured to 14 from 16 balls with one six.
It was left to Hardik Pandya to rescue the innings. The all-rounder proved there is no substitute for experience as he hit an unbeaten 40 from 23 balls, including three successive sixes off Tanvir Islam.
The warm-up match in New York also showed that this tournament could be lot more challenging for batting, at least at some venues, as both pacers and spinners got ample help in the air and off the surface.
India reached 182-5 in their 20 overs.
A sizeable number of players had just returned from the Indian Premier League where scores of 250 and more were scored regularly. However, new venues like New York and Dallas, and a few in the Caribbean could require a lot more nuanced approach to T20 cricket.
India's bowling attack then made the most of helpful conditions as their quicks scythed through the Bangladesh top order. Left-arm quick Arshdeep Singh got the ball to hold and move off the pitch as he picked 2-3 in his first two overs.
Jasprit Bumrah bowled one incisive over at the start before the rest of the bowling attack was given a chance to stake their claim for a spot in the playing XI.
Dube bowled three overs and got enough encouragement from the pitch to remain in the mind of the team management for the main phase of the tournament. He even picked up two wickets off successive balls in the last over of the innings.
Bangladesh were reduced to 41-5 and the game was as good as over. The Indians restricted Bangladesh to 122-9 to win easily. But more importantly they got an idea about the conditions that should be similar when they face Ireland in their first match of the World Cup on Wednesday and then Pakistan on Sunday.
MATCH INFO
Iceland 0 England 1 (Sterling pen 90 1)
Man of the match Kari Arnason (Iceland)
Timeline
2012-2015
The company offers payments/bribes to win key contracts in the Middle East
May 2017
The UK SFO officially opens investigation into Petrofac’s use of agents, corruption, and potential bribery to secure contracts
September 2021
Petrofac pleads guilty to seven counts of failing to prevent bribery under the UK Bribery Act
October 2021
Court fines Petrofac £77 million for bribery. Former executive receives a two-year suspended sentence
December 2024
Petrofac enters into comprehensive restructuring to strengthen the financial position of the group
May 2025
The High Court of England and Wales approves the company’s restructuring plan
July 2025
The Court of Appeal issues a judgment challenging parts of the restructuring plan
August 2025
Petrofac issues a business update to execute the restructuring and confirms it will appeal the Court of Appeal decision
October 2025
Petrofac loses a major TenneT offshore wind contract worth €13 billion. Holding company files for administration in the UK. Petrofac delisted from the London Stock Exchange
November 2025
180 Petrofac employees laid off in the UAE
Stuck in a job without a pay rise? Here's what to do
Chris Greaves, the managing director of Hays Gulf Region, says those without a pay rise for an extended period must start asking questions – both of themselves and their employer.
“First, are they happy with that or do they want more?” he says. “Job-seeking is a time-consuming, frustrating and long-winded affair so are they prepared to put themselves through that rigmarole? Before they consider that, they must ask their employer what is happening.”
Most employees bring up pay rise queries at their annual performance appraisal and find out what the company has in store for them from a career perspective.
Those with no formal appraisal system, Mr Greaves says, should ask HR or their line manager for an assessment.
“You want to find out how they value your contribution and where your job could go,” he says. “You’ve got to be brave enough to ask some questions and if you don’t like the answers then you have to develop a strategy or change jobs if you are prepared to go through the job-seeking process.”
For those that do reach the salary negotiation with their current employer, Mr Greaves says there is no point in asking for less than 5 per cent.
“However, this can only really have any chance of success if you can identify where you add value to the business (preferably you can put a monetary value on it), or you can point to a sustained contribution above the call of duty or to other achievements you think your employer will value.”
The specs
Engine: four-litre V6 and 3.5-litre V6 twin-turbo
Transmission: six-speed and 10-speed
Power: 271 and 409 horsepower
Torque: 385 and 650Nm
Price: from Dh229,900 to Dh355,000
How to report a beggar
Abu Dhabi – Call 999 or 8002626 (Aman Service)
Dubai – Call 800243
Sharjah – Call 065632222
Ras Al Khaimah - Call 072053372
Ajman – Call 067401616
Umm Al Quwain – Call 999
Fujairah - Call 092051100 or 092224411
South and West: From a Notebook
Joan Didion
Fourth Estate
Gulf Under 19s final
Dubai College A 50-12 Dubai College B
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if you go
The flights
Emirates fly direct from Dubai to Houston, Texas, where United have direct flights to Managua. Alternatively, from October, Iberia will offer connections from Madrid, which can be reached by both Etihad from Abu Dhabi and Emirates from Dubai.
The trip
Geodyssey’s (Geodyssey.co.uk) 15-night Nicaragua Odyssey visits the colonial cities of Leon and Granada, lively country villages, the lake island of Ometepe and a stunning array of landscapes, with wildlife, history, creative crafts and more. From Dh18,500 per person, based on two sharing, including transfers and tours but excluding international flights. For more information, visit visitnicaragua.us.
About Seez
Company name/date started: Seez, set up in September 2015 and the app was released in August 2017
Founder/CEO name(s): Tarek Kabrit, co-founder and chief executive, and Andrew Kabrit, co-founder and chief operating officer
Based in: Dubai, with operations also in Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Lebanon
Sector: Search engine for car buying, selling and leasing
Size: (employees/revenue): 11; undisclosed
Stage of funding: $1.8 million in seed funding; followed by another $1.5m bridge round - in the process of closing Series A
Investors: Wamda Capital, B&Y and Phoenician Funds
TICKETS
Tickets start at Dh100 for adults, while children can enter free on the opening day. For more information, visit www.mubadalawtc.com.
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Abu Dhabi Grand Slam Jiu-Jitsu World Tour Calendar 2018/19
July 29: OTA Gymnasium in Tokyo, Japan
Sep 22-23: LA Convention Centre in Los Angeles, US
Nov 16-18: Carioca Arena Centre in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Feb 7-9: Mubadala Arena in Abu Dhabi, UAE
Mar 9-10: Copper Box Arena in London, UK
Two-step truce
The UN-brokered ceasefire deal for Hodeidah will be implemented in two stages, with the first to be completed before the New Year begins, according to the Arab Coalition supporting the Yemeni government.
By midnight on December 31, the Houthi rebels will have to withdraw from the ports of Hodeidah, Ras Issa and Al Saqef, coalition officials told The National.
The second stage will be the complete withdrawal of all pro-government forces and rebels from Hodeidah city, to be completed by midnight on January 7.
The process is to be overseen by a Redeployment Co-ordination Committee (RCC) comprising UN monitors and representatives of the government and the rebels.
The agreement also calls the deployment of UN-supervised neutral forces in the city and the establishment of humanitarian corridors to ensure distribution of aid across the country.
