DUBAI // Austin Healey, the former England rugby international, will be on the dance floor next weekend instead of completing a hat-trick of appearances at the Dubai Rugby Sevens.
Healey, who won 51 caps for England, was the biggest name at the last two editions of the Sevens, but this year he is competing instead as one of the favourites to win Strictly Come Dancing, the popular UK television dance contest.
The 35-year-old utility back turned out twice for an all-star charity side, the Christina Noble Children's Foundation, in the international invitation competition, and was planning to play for their veterans' side this time around.
Last year, he stated his intention to return to the Emirates for a third time, but said it "depends on whether the wife gives me a pass to come back". However, he has since opted to follow the lead of his friend and former England colleague, Matt Dawson, by competing in the hit BBC dance contest.
The Strictly Come Dancing final takes place at Christmas, and Healey is one of the main contenders. He has topped the judges' vote every week since the start of the series, and as the housewives' favourite he has also fared strongly in the decisive public votes.
Healey's sequin-suited presence on the dance floor has made for an odd spectacle, with a variety of gnarled figures from the rugby world in the crowd cheering him on.
Martin Johnson, England's World Cup winning captain from 2003, was in the audience supporting his former Leicester Tigers colleague during the early rounds.
Will Greenwood, another ex-England rugby star who turned out for Christina Noble's veterans' side last year, has been a regular supporter of his former housemate.
He is also set to miss out on a return to Dubai for the Nov 27-29 competition as he will be at Twickenham commentating on England's Test match against New Zealand.
"Both of us are desperately disappointed," said Greenwood. "Austin told me to pass on his deep regret that he can't come back out. We are old mates, and when we played at the Sevens last year, we were treated as though we had met 500 old mates. Hopefully, although we will be another year older in 2009, we will be back."
Greenwood is not surprised by Healey's success on the dance floor. "He is doing very well. He is a gobby little guy, but he is one of the most talented players of any sport - golf, water skiing, skiing, rugby - that I have ever met. It is absolutely no surprise to me that he has dominated the show. The housewives love the muscles, the banter, and the dancing actually reflects how good he is at what he is supposed to be doing."
pradley@thenational.ae
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Kolarov (56')
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
Thank You for Banking with Us
Director: Laila Abbas
Starring: Yasmine Al Massri, Clara Khoury, Kamel El Basha, Ashraf Barhoum
Rating: 4/5
The specs
Engine: Long-range single or dual motor with 200kW or 400kW battery
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Max touring range: 620km / 590km
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Sector: E-commerce
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Name: Steppi
Founders: Joe Franklin and Milos Savic
Launched: February 2020
Size: 10,000 users by the end of July and a goal of 200,000 users by the end of the year
Employees: Five
Based: Jumeirah Lakes Towers, Dubai
Financing stage: Two seed rounds – the first sourced from angel investors and the founders' personal savings
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TCL INFO
Teams:
Punjabi Legends Owners: Inzamam-ul-Haq and Intizar-ul-Haq; Key player: Misbah-ul-Haq
Pakhtoons Owners: Habib Khan and Tajuddin Khan; Key player: Shahid Afridi
Maratha Arabians Owners: Sohail Khan, Ali Tumbi, Parvez Khan; Key player: Virender Sehwag
Bangla Tigers Owners: Shirajuddin Alam, Yasin Choudhary, Neelesh Bhatnager, Anis and Rizwan Sajan; Key player: TBC
Colombo Lions Owners: Sri Lanka Cricket; Key player: TBC
Kerala Kings Owners: Hussain Adam Ali and Shafi Ul Mulk; Key player: Eoin Morgan
Venue Sharjah Cricket Stadium
Format 10 overs per side, matches last for 90 minutes
Timeline October 25: Around 120 players to be entered into a draft, to be held in Dubai; December 21: Matches start; December 24: Finals
Cricket World Cup League 2
UAE squad
Rahul Chopra (captain), Aayan Afzal Khan, Ali Naseer, Aryansh Sharma, Basil Hameed, Dhruv Parashar, Junaid Siddique, Muhammad Farooq, Muhammad Jawadullah, Muhammad Waseem, Omid Rahman, Rahul Bhatia, Tanish Suri, Vishnu Sukumaran, Vriitya Aravind
Fixtures
Friday, November 1 – Oman v UAE
Sunday, November 3 – UAE v Netherlands
Thursday, November 7 – UAE v Oman
Saturday, November 9 – Netherlands v UAE
PSA DUBAI WORLD SERIES FINALS LINE-UP
Men’s:
Mohamed El Shorbagy (EGY)
Ali Farag (EGY)
Simon Rosner (GER)
Tarek Momen (EGY)
Miguel Angel Rodriguez (COL)
Gregory Gaultier (FRA)
Karim Abdel Gawad (EGY)
Nick Matthew (ENG)
Women's:
Nour El Sherbini (EGY)
Raneem El Welily (EGY)
Nour El Tayeb (EGY)
Laura Massaro (ENG)
Joelle King (NZE)
Camille Serme (FRA)
Nouran Gohar (EGY)
Sarah-Jane Perry (ENG)
Players Selected for La Liga Trials
U18 Age Group
Name: Ahmed Salam (Malaga)
Position: Right Wing
Nationality: Jordanian
Name: Yahia Iraqi (Malaga)
Position: Left Wing
Nationality: Morocco
Name: Mohammed Bouherrafa (Almeria)
Position: Centre-Midfield
Nationality: French
Name: Mohammed Rajeh (Cadiz)
Position: Striker
Nationality: Jordanian
U16 Age Group
Name: Mehdi Elkhamlichi (Malaga)
Position: Lead Striker
Nationality: Morocco
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Tree of Hell
Starring: Raed Zeno, Hadi Awada, Dr Mohammad Abdalla
Director: Raed Zeno
Rating: 4/5
Indoor cricket in a nutshell
Indoor Cricket World Cup - Sep 16-20, Insportz, Dubai
16 Indoor cricket matches are 16 overs per side
8 There are eight players per team
9 There have been nine Indoor Cricket World Cups for men. Australia have won every one.
5 Five runs are deducted from the score when a wickets falls
4 Batsmen bat in pairs, facing four overs per partnership
Scoring In indoor cricket, runs are scored by way of both physical and bonus runs. Physical runs are scored by both batsmen completing a run from one crease to the other. Bonus runs are scored when the ball hits a net in different zones, but only when at least one physical run is score.
Zones
A Front net, behind the striker and wicketkeeper: 0 runs
B Side nets, between the striker and halfway down the pitch: 1 run
C Side nets between halfway and the bowlers end: 2 runs
D Back net: 4 runs on the bounce, 6 runs on the full