England will be looking to prove there is life beyond Kevin Pietersen when they meet New Zealand tonight in St Lucia.
Pietersen has flown home for the birth of his first child after his latest match-winning knocks virtually assured England a place in the semi-finals with victories over Pakistan and South Africa.
The equation, however, could change if South Africa beat Pakistan and England lose to New Zealand. That would bring run-rates into the equation with three teams on four points.
Pietersen, however, has few doubts about England's chances of progressing the last-four and hopes to be back in time for the semi-finals - should everything go right and his child shows the same gift of timing as dad.
"It's my first child so it's a hell of an exciting time for me," said Pietersen in a TV interview after sinking South Africa with a 33-ball blitz. "I'm flying back to London in the next 24 hours and hoping everything goes well and according to plan, there's no complications. If we get through to the semi-finals, I'll come in the day before the semi-finals."
Paul Collingwood, the captain, meanwhile, credited his team's run of wins to Pietersen. "The contributions he's made in the last two games - two man-of-the-matches - have been fantastic," he said. "His contributions have certainly gone a long way towards getting us into the semi-finals."
South Africa are left with the task of beating Pakistan on the slower pitches of St Lucia, where their pace battery will not be of much help.
"The players are there, it is just about getting it together again," Graeme Smith, the South Africa captain, was quoted as saying on Cricinfo. "It is about us regrouping mentally, making sure that we work out what went wrong and try and put it right against Pakistan."
Pakistan are virtually out of the race, but should they beat South Africa, Shahid Afridi and his troops will be cheering on England and hoping for a heavy New Zealand defeat. That would open the door for them as it would leave three teams on two points.
* Compiled by Ahmed Rizvi
Pakistan v South Africa, 5.30pm and England v New Zealand, 9.30pm, both on CricOne
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
How to avoid crypto fraud
- Use unique usernames and passwords while enabling multi-factor authentication.
- Use an offline private key, a physical device that requires manual activation, whenever you access your wallet.
- Avoid suspicious social media ads promoting fraudulent schemes.
- Only invest in crypto projects that you fully understand.
- Critically assess whether a project’s promises or returns seem too good to be true.
- Only use reputable platforms that have a track record of strong regulatory compliance.
- Store funds in hardware wallets as opposed to online exchanges.
The biog
Fatima Al Darmaki is an Emirati widow with three children
She has received 46 certificates of appreciation and excellence throughout her career
She won the 'ideal mother' category at the Minister of Interior Awards for Excellence
Her favourite food is Harees, a slow-cooked porridge-like dish made from boiled wheat berries mixed with chicken
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
Started: 2020
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Entertainment
Number of staff: 210
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
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Key findings of Jenkins report
- Founder of the Muslim Brotherhood, Hassan al Banna, "accepted the political utility of violence"
- Views of key Muslim Brotherhood ideologue, Sayyid Qutb, have “consistently been understood” as permitting “the use of extreme violence in the pursuit of the perfect Islamic society” and “never been institutionally disowned” by the movement.
- Muslim Brotherhood at all levels has repeatedly defended Hamas attacks against Israel, including the use of suicide bombers and the killing of civilians.
- Laying out the report in the House of Commons, David Cameron told MPs: "The main findings of the review support the conclusion that membership of, association with, or influence by the Muslim Brotherhood should be considered as a possible indicator of extremism."
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League quarter-final second leg:
Juventus 1 Ajax 2
Ajax advance 3-2 on aggregate
