Novak Djokovic will return to the top of the world rankings after an emphatic late-night victory in the first round of the US Open on Monday.
Second seed Djokovic, who was forced to miss last year's US Open over Covid-related travel restrictions and therefore has no ranking points to defend, eased to a 6-0, 6-2, 6-3 win against France's Alexandre Muller in just one hour and 35 minutes.
The win means Djokovic is guaranteed to replace defending US Open champion Carlos Alcaraz as world No 1 when the tennis rankings are next updated after the tournament.
Entering Arthur Ashe Stadium after 11pm local time, Djokovic began like a player determined to get off the court as quickly as possible.
Djokovic, a three-time US Open champion, reeled off the opening eight games before Muller belatedly got on the board, earning sympathetic applause from a crowd including former US President Barack Obama and his wife, Michelle.
The 36-year-old Serb, chasing a record-extending 24th male Grand Slam title, will face Spain's Bernabe Zapata Miralles in the second round.
"I didn't care if I started after midnight because I was looking forward to this moment for a few years, to be out on the biggest stadium in our sport, the loudest stadium in our sport, playing night session," Djokovic said. "It was a great joy to be stepping out on the court.
"I think the performance explains how I felt tonight, particularly in the first two sets. It was kind of lights-out tennis really, almost flawless, perfect first set.
"Overall I'm very, very pleased with the way I feel, with the way I'm playing. Hopefully I can maintain that level."
Gauff grinds past Siegemund
Djokovic's arrival on court had been delayed after a gruelling three-set battle between American teenager Coco Gauff and Germany's Laura Siegemund in the preceding night game.
The 19-year-old Gauff, tipped by many as the biggest threat to defending US Open champion Iga Swiatek, was forced to dig deep before winning 3-6, 6-2, 6-4 in 2hr 50min.
An ill-tempered clash was marked by tetchy confrontations by both players with chair umpire Marijana Veljovic.
Gauff accused the Serbian official of failing to properly enforce time violation rules against Siegemund.
"I felt like the rules were being bent," Gauff said. "That's why a lot of players get mad when these time violations are called because one ref is letting them go over, the other is more strict on the time."
Siegemund, 35, meanwhile voiced disgust at the partisan New York crowd, describing them as "respectless" for the way they cheered every error or missed first serve.
"They had no respect for me, no respect for the way I played, no respect for the player that I am, they had no respect for good tennis," Siegemund said.
Swiatek storms into second round
In other women's matches on Monday, defending champion Swiatek needed less than hour to defeat Sweden's Rebecca Peterson 6-0, 6-1.
The 22-year-old world No 1 from Poland overwhelmed her opponent with five breaks of serve and 20 winners to complete victory in just 58 minutes on the Arthur Ashe Stadium.
"I wanted to start the tournament with everything I was focusing on. I was happy to play a great game, with all the pressure and expectations I was happy on the court," said Swiatek after her win.
Swiatek, targeting her fifth Grand Slam title, will face Daria Saville of Australia in round two.
While Swiatek advanced safely, there was no such luck for Greece's eighth seed Maria Sakkari, who became the highest ranked early casualty, beaten 6-4, 6-4 by Spain's Rebeka Masarova, ranked 71st in the world.
Kazakhstan's fourth seed Elena Rybakina was an easy winner over Ukraine's Marta Kostyuk, cruising through to the second round with a 6-2, 6-1 victory.
Wozniacki wins on return
There was also a win for former world No 1 Caroline Wozniacki, making her first Grand Slam appearance in over three years.
The 33-year-old Danish mother-of-two, who came out of retirement earlier this month, defeated Russian qualifier Tatiana Prozorova 6-3, 6-2.
Back in the men's draw meanwhile, Djokovic's route to a potential final meeting with Alcaraz was made easier as Danish fourth seed Holger Rune was stunned in four sets by Spanish journeyman Roberto Carballes Baena, a clay-court specialist ranked 63rd in the world.
Carballes Baena punished an error-strewn display by Rune to win 6-3, 4-6, 6-3, 6-2.
Last year's US Open runner-up, Norway's fifth seed Casper Ruud, reached the second round with a battling 7-6, 3-6, 6-4, 7-6 defeat of Emilio Nava of the United States.
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.”
Like a Fading Shadow
Antonio Muñoz Molina
Translated from the Spanish by Camilo A. Ramirez
Tuskar Rock Press (pp. 310)
VEZEETA PROFILE
Date started: 2012
Founder: Amir Barsoum
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: HealthTech / MedTech
Size: 300 employees
Funding: $22.6 million (as of September 2018)
Investors: Technology Development Fund, Silicon Badia, Beco Capital, Vostok New Ventures, Endeavour Catalyst, Crescent Enterprises’ CE-Ventures, Saudi Technology Ventures and IFC
'Shakuntala Devi'
Starring: Vidya Balan, Sanya Malhotra
Director: Anu Menon
Rating: Three out of five stars
MATCH INFO
UAE Division 1
Abu Dhabi Harlequins 12-24 Abu Dhabi Saracens
Sly%20Cooper%20and%20the%20Thievius%20Raccoonus
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDeveloper%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Sucker%20Punch%20Productions%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPublisher%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Sony%20Computer%20Entertainment%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EConsole%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20PlayStation%202%20to%205%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%205%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
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."
