Kei Nishikori won the Japan Open title for the second time in three years on Sunday, collapsing in joy on the court as he defeated Milos Raonic 7-6 (7/5), 4-6, 6-4.
The surprise US Open finalist, who also claimed the Kuala Lumpur trophy a week ago, was in tears as he hugged his tennis star-turned-coach Michael Chang.
The victory in just over two hours sends Nishikori to fifth in the points race for November’s ATP season final in London while Canadian Raonic holds onto the eighth and final spot.
“I hope to get to London. I am getting close, but there are two more Masters 1000s and 500s left,” said Nishikori. “These next few weeks will be really important for me.
“Michael has raised my level. We have practised more on the court and also physical work. Beating a few Top 10 guys over the past year has helped my confidence.”
Nishikori won the opening set in three-quarters of an hour and was broken in the seventh game of the second set as Raonic levelled a set each.
The local crowd-pleaser finally came though with his concluding break to earn the title.
The match was played under the closed roof of the Ariake Colosseum as rains from an approaching typhoon fell.
Nishikori has now beaten Raonic in three of four meetings this season, including at the US Open. The runner-up fired 22 aces and lost serve only once, in the final game of a long afternoon.
Nishikori added a fourth title to his 2014 honours list after also winning Memphis and Barcelona before Kuala Lumpur. He stands 49-10 this season.
“It’s the first time I have won a title two weeks in a row. After the US Open, it was hard to maintain my motivation. I had to stay strong and focused, especially this week when I wasn’t feeling 100 per cent.”
The title came in front on Nishikori’s home public during a 10,000-strong sellout and left Raonic wondering what he might have to do to win in the Japanese capital.
The Canadian has now lost the last three finals in the capital, going down to Juan Martin del Potro a year ago and to Nishikori in 2012.
“It is disappointing to lose in my third straight (Tokyo) final. To be honest with you, other than the first year [2012] I felt I created my opportunities,” he said.
“Kei just played better when it came down to the third set two years ago. I’ve always been in the thick of things the past two years, so I would say two years ago was more disappointing.
“It was a great match. We both played a high level of tennis. At the beginning, the match was passing by really quick, but in the second and third set it was really good.
“He’s been playing with a lot of confidence, he went for his shots and it paid off.”
The top Japanese was treated over the course of the home week for hip and lower back pain, but the physical problems could not stop him from charging to victory in the end and his seventh career title.
“He was serving really well, with a lot of aces. Likely I got the first tie-break and that helped my motivation for the match,” said Nishikori.
“If I had lost the tie-break, I might have screwed up the whole match. He started aggressively and I think it was one of my toughest games against Milos.
“I am really happy to win. He had a lot of chances in the third set; he almost broke my serve a couple of times.”
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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.”
How to wear a kandura
Dos
- Wear the right fabric for the right season and occasion
- Always ask for the dress code if you don’t know
- Wear a white kandura, white ghutra / shemagh (headwear) and black shoes for work
- Wear 100 per cent cotton under the kandura as most fabrics are polyester
Don’ts
- Wear hamdania for work, always wear a ghutra and agal
- Buy a kandura only based on how it feels; ask questions about the fabric and understand what you are buying
