Rafael Nadal suffered a first ever opening-round exit at the French Open as fourth seed Alexander Zverev swept to a straight-sets victory at Roland Garros on Monday.
The 14-time tournament champion arrived in Paris having only played four events since January 2023 after suffering a hip injury and then a muscle tear. That left him unseeded and vulnerable to a difficult opening round at a tournament where he has only lost three of his 115 matches.
And so it turned out after the Spaniard was drawn against world No 4 Zverev who arrived in the French capital as one of the title favourites after winning the Rome Open earlier this month.
Nadal showed flashes of top form again on Court Philippe Chatrier but the 37-year-old ultimately went down fighting in a 6-3, 7-6, 6-3 loss. The 22-time Grand Slam winner was a break of serve up in the second and third sets, only to be pinned back on both occasions by his in-form 27-year-old opponent.
Victory meant Zverev became only the third man to beat Nadal at Roland Garros, after Novak Djokovic and Robin Soderling, with the German banishing memories of the serious ankle injury that forced him to quit when the duo last met in the 2022 semi-finals.
Nadal admitted that he was unsure if this was to be his last appearance at a venue where he has reigned supreme since first lifting the Musketeers' Cup in 2005 but did suggest he was keen to return for this summer's Olympic Games in Paris.
“It is difficult for me to talk, I don't know if it's the last time I'll be here in front of all of you,” said Nadal speaking on court. “Honestly, I am not sure. If it is, then you have been amazing. The feelings I have today are difficult to describe in words. It is the place I love the most.
“I have to congratulate Sasha for this great match. I really wish you all the best in this tournament, 2022 was a tough moment for you so you deserve it.
“I have been going through a very tough two years in terms of injuries. I went all through these processes with the dream to be back here. The first round wasn't ideal. I was competitive and I had chances but it was difficult against a player as good as Sasha.
“It's hard to say about the future. I am travelling with my family and I am having fun. The body is feeling better than it did two months ago. Maybe in two months I say it's enough. That is something I don't feel yet. I hope to be back here for the Olympics, that motivates me. I really hope to be well prepared.”
Second seed Jannik Sinner powered past Chris Eubanks 6-3, 6-3, 6-4 as the Australian Open champion kept up his 100 per cent record in Grand Slams this year, which now stands at 8-0.
Sinner is playing only his third tournament since winning the Miami Masters in March, after losing to Stefanos Tsitsipas in the Monte Carlo Masters semi-finals and then withdrawing from the Madrid Open before his quarter-final match.
The 22-year-old, who missed his home Italian Open this month due to an injured hip, moved well and he limited the big-serving American to four aces, converted five of 10 break points and was broken only once himself.
Not surprisingly, the clean-striking Sinner won 10 of the 14 points that lasted nine strokes or more as he looks to maintain the form that saw him lift his first major title, when he fought back from two sets down to beat Daniil Medvedev in Melbourne.
“The hip is good. I'm very happy. I'm glad that my team and myself worked very hard to be back on court as soon as possible,” Sinner said. “For sure, [my] general shape is not at 100 per cent yet, so we try to build every day.”
“I'm obviously happy by what I have achieved in the last months. But our goal is to improve every day. That for me is more important,” added Sinner, who now faces French veteran Richard Gasquet.
Stefanos Tsitsipas, meanwhile, kicked off his campaign with a no-nonsense 7-6, 6-4, 6-1 victory over Hungarian journeyman Marton Fucsovics under the roof on Court Suzanne Lenglen.
“The beginning was quite tough, he came in with a lot of confidence,” said the Greek ninth seed, who will now take Germany's Daniel Altmaier. “Having to deal with that was not an easy task.
“Getting a hold of that first set was the biggest moment today. I played brilliant tennis towards the end. I'm really happy to assert myself in that sort of way.”
Pharaoh's curse
British aristocrat Lord Carnarvon, who funded the expedition to find the Tutankhamun tomb, died in a Cairo hotel four months after the crypt was opened.
He had been in poor health for many years after a car crash, and a mosquito bite made worse by a shaving cut led to blood poisoning and pneumonia.
Reports at the time said Lord Carnarvon suffered from “pain as the inflammation affected the nasal passages and eyes”.
Decades later, scientists contended he had died of aspergillosis after inhaling spores of the fungus aspergillus in the tomb, which can lie dormant for months. The fact several others who entered were also found dead withiin a short time led to the myth of the curse.
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Brief scoreline:
Liverpool 2
Keita 5', Firmino 26'
Porto 0
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.”
Dust and sand storms compared
Sand storm
- Particle size: Larger, heavier sand grains
- Visibility: Often dramatic with thick "walls" of sand
- Duration: Short-lived, typically localised
- Travel distance: Limited
- Source: Open desert areas with strong winds
Dust storm
- Particle size: Much finer, lightweight particles
- Visibility: Hazy skies but less intense
- Duration: Can linger for days
- Travel distance: Long-range, up to thousands of kilometres
- Source: Can be carried from distant regions
