Mohammad Amir is a man on a mission. Like most cricketers, he is looking to make up for lost time.
This period of 2020 should have been set aside for the T20 World Cup in Australia. But the coronavirus pandemic ruined that plan, and disrupted every sporting event. What the meant was cricketers spent a large section of the year waiting for assignments.
The stop-start nature of the calendar was tricky for another reason. Rustiness was bound to be a factor and cricketers had to play a fine balancing act to avoid injuries.
So you can imagine the pressure Amir must have been under bowling the Super Over in the first qualifier of the Pakistan Super League against Multan Sultans.
It was Amir's first match at the top level since the England T20 series in August. There were some domestic matches in the National T20 Cup in the lead up to the PSL playoffs, which had been rescheduled due to the Covid-19 pandemic, but that was it.
And yet, Amir bowled one of the greatest super overs as he defended 14 runs against Multan batsmen Ravi Bopara and Rilee Rossouw; he did not concede a single boundary.
Some believe it to be one of the finest overs in limited overs cricket bowled by Amir. The left-arm fast bowler himself puts it right up there with his best efforts.
The 2017 Champions Trophy final against India where he dismissed Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli with the new ball, the 2016 Asia Cup where he breathed fire while defending just 83 against the Indians and his first over against Sri Lanka in the 2009 T20 World Cup final that saw the back of Tillakaratne Dilshan and set up the title win are his favourites. And now the Super Over in Karachi.
"It was one of my best overs," Amir told The National. "There are two or three overs or spells that I really liked. There was the Champions Trophy final. Then the Asia Cup match against India. Also the 2009 World Cup final over against Dilshan. They were my best spells and this was among them."
That one spectacular over sent Karachi to the final where they will face Lahore Qalandars on Tuesday.
Pulling off such a performance after being away from top level cricket for a long time was no mean feat. Amir said keeping his bowling muscles in shape in the domestic circuit helped.
"It was difficult. There was a break of almost six or seven months. Such a break for an athlete is very tough. If a fast bowler doesn't bowl for a week, he goes back [in his game]. But cricket started and I kept bowling in England. And then in Pakistan, I was playing the National T20 Cup. So I had a bit of momentum coming into the PSL. And regardless, I continued my training at home,” the 28-year-old said.
And being the senior bowler, who now plays white ball exclusively, Amir knew what he had to do to succeed in the Super Over – yorkers at the fifth stump and wider.
If a fast bowler doesn't bowl for a week, he goes back [in his game]
“As a senior player, the coach and captain ask you what your plan is. As a player, you should always discuss and look at different ideas. At the end of the day, a player backs his skills. So whenever there is pressure, I keep things simple and stick to my plans,” he explained.
It was an extra special result for Amir and the Karachi franchise. This was their first match since the tragic death of their coach and renowned commentator Dean Jones while on IPL duty.
Karachi and Multan players paid a special tribute to the late Aussie before a start of the qualifier and Amir said he hopes to win the title on Tuesday for the beloved coach.
“I always enjoyed working with Mickey Arthur. And then with Dean Jones. He was one of the best coaches in the world. The energy he brought to Karachi Kings is something we will always miss. That energy brought us this far.
"What I really liked about him was that he was always very positive. His knowledge was of a very high level. We will always miss him and if we win the final, it will be for Dean Jones.”
What may also motivate Amir is getting snubbed by the national selectors for the limited overs tour of New Zealand. For a specialist limited overs bowler like Amir, it must have been a tough pill to swallow. His Super Over exploits, however, have come at just the right time as a reminder of his talent.
“As a cricketer, if you are dropped, your thought is that 'I will perform when I get my next opportunity'. The Super Over was a pressure situation. Allah gave me the opportunity. This is what I can do. They [selectors] have their thinking. Only they can tell why I am not in their plans. But as a player, all I can do is perform.”
How to improve Arabic reading in early years
One 45-minute class per week in Standard Arabic is not sufficient
The goal should be for grade 1 and 2 students to become fluent readers
Subjects like technology, social studies, science can be taught in later grades
Grade 1 curricula should include oral instruction in Standard Arabic
First graders must regularly practice individual letters and combinations
Time should be slotted in class to read longer passages in early grades
Improve the appearance of textbooks
Revision of curriculum should be undertaken as per research findings
Conjugations of most common verb forms should be taught
Systematic learning of Standard Arabic grammar
Breast cancer in men: the facts
1) Breast cancer is men is rare but can develop rapidly. It usually occurs in those over the ages of 60, but can occasionally affect younger men.
2) Symptoms can include a lump, discharge, swollen glands or a rash.
3) People with a history of cancer in the family can be more susceptible.
4) Treatments include surgery and chemotherapy but early diagnosis is the key.
5) Anyone concerned is urged to contact their doctor
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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