Novak Djokovic is set to take on fellow Serb Miomir Kecmanovic in the first round of the Australian Open — although it remains uncertain whether the world No 1 will be allowed to play.
The 34-year-old defending champion, who practised at the Rod Laver Arena on Thursday, drew unseeded Kecmanovic for his opening match that should take place on Monday or Tuesday. Organisers Tennis Australia had delayed the draw for more than an hour, without saying why.
Top-ranked Djokovic had his visa cancelled on arrival in Melbourne last week when his vaccination exemption was rejected, but he won a legal battle on procedural grounds that allowed him to stay in the country.
Australia's immigration minister Alex Hawke was still considering whether to deport the nine-time champion, who is not vaccinated against Covid-19. The tournament starts next Monday.
Tournament director Craig Tiley declined to answer questions about Djokovic after the draw.
If he’s allowed to stay, Djokovic’s bid for a men's record 21st major title could mean a quarter-final against No 7-ranked Matteo Berrettini and possibly a semi-final against Rafael Nadal or third-seed Alexander Zverev.
He is tied with Nadal and Roger Federer on 20 Grand Slam titles, missing a chance for the all-time record when he lost the US Open final to Daniil Medvedev last year.
Spanish sixth seed Nadal starts against unseeded American Marcos Giron. Russian second seed Medvedev, who lost to Djokovic in last year's final in Melbourne, will play Swiss Henri Laaksonen.
Britain's former world No 1 Andy Murray was drawn against 21st seed Nikoloz Basilashvili — a day after beating the Georgian in the Sydney Tennis Classic.
In the women's draw, defending champion Naomi Osaka takes on Colombia's Camila Osorio while world No 1 Ashleigh Barty starts her quest for a first home Grand Slam title against a qualifier.
Top seed Barty could face Japan's Osaka, seeded 13th as she returns after a four-month break from the sport, in the fourth round. After that, No 5 Maria Sakkari or No 9 Ons Jabeur could be waiting in the quarter-finals.
Sofia Kenin, who was champion in 2020, has a tough opener against fellow American Madison Keys and could meet No 18 seed Coco Gauff in the third round. Britain's US Open champion Emma Raducanu, seeded 17th, faces American world No 68 Sloane Stephens.
Meanwhile, world No 4 Stefanos Tsitsipas has described Djokovic as having been “playing by his own rules” ahead of the tournament.
On Wednesday, Djokovic released a long statement explaining why he was not in isolation after testing positive for Covid-19 in December — that paved the way for his medical exemption for the first Grand Slam of the year — and saying his agent had made a mistake in filling out his Australian travel declaration.
“For sure, he's been playing by his own rules and has been doing what not many players had the guts to do, especially after the ATP announced certain criteria for players to enter the country,” Greece's Tsitsipas told India's WION news channel.
“No one really thought they could come to Australia unvaccinated and not having to follow the protocols … it takes a lot of daring to do and putting the Grand Slam at risk, which I don't think many players would do.”
The ATP, which governs men's tennis, has said 97 of the top 100 male players are vaccinated. Asked if Djokovic should defend his title at Melbourne Park next week as his visa saga continues, Tsitsipas said: “There are two ways to look at it. One side of it is that almost every single player is fully vaccinated … and have followed the protocols to play in Australia.
“On the other hand, it seems not everyone is playing by the rules … a very small majority chose to follow their own way, which kind of makes the majority look like fools.”
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.”
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 261hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 405Nm at 1,750-3,500rpm
Transmission: 9-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 6.9L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh117,059
The specs
Price: From Dh180,000 (estimate)
Engine: 2.0-litre turbocharged and supercharged in-line four-cylinder
Transmission: Eight-speed automatic
Power: 320hp @ 5,700rpm
Torque: 400Nm @ 2,200rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 9.7L / 100km
