Australia’s Chris Rogers will miss second Test against West Indies due to concussion

Australia opening batsman Chris Rogers has been ruled out for a second consecutive Test against West Indies due to concussion.

Rogers missed the opening match in Dominica after being struck on the helmet by a ball in training and team doctor Peter Brukner said he had not recovered sufficiently to be selected for the second and final Test in Kingston starting on Thursday.

“Chris has improved but he is still not 100 per cent ... therefore he is unavailable for selection for the second Test,” Brukner said on Cricket Australia’s website. “While most concussions resolve within a week there is a significant number who remain symptomatic and require a longer period of recovery.

“Unfortunately Chris is in this category. We will continue to monitor his progress and hopefully it will not be too long before he is back to full training.”

– ‘Credit to our bowlers’ says Australia’s Clarke after West Indies annihilation

Shaun Marsh batted in the Rogers’s place in the nine-wicket win in Dominica, scoring 19 and 13 not out. Selectors have yet to name a team but Marsh is likely to retain his place, despite his limited contribution in the first Test.

While Australia trounced the hosts in three days at Windsor Park their traditional struggles against spin continued.

West Indies leg-spinner Devendra Bishoo took six wickets in the first innings including three top-order batsmen.

One of Bishoo’s victims was Steven Smith, considered one of Australia’s best players of spin. Smith said he hoped Australia’s top six batsmen would handle the conditions better at Sabina Park.

“I think it’s always quite hard coming from Australia to play over here where guys are able to get the ball out of the front of the hand and still get a lot of spin,” he wrote on CA’s website. “I guess that’s traditionally what we’re not used to, being from Australia. But I think the guys are learning how to play in these conditions.

“Obviously it didn’t go to plan with the top order but I think that’s one thing we’ll continue to address and hopefully the top six are the guys in the runs during the next Test.”

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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.”

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