Australia's Shaun Marsh was an instrumental part of the side that topped South Africa in a Test series in February. Alexander Joe / AFP / February 12, 2014
Australia's Shaun Marsh was an instrumental part of the side that topped South Africa in a Test series in February. Alexander Joe / AFP / February 12, 2014

Sport

Australia’s Shaun Marsh to miss UAE series against Pakistan after surgery

Cricket Australia announced on Tuesday they would be missing Marsh for the October series against Pakistan to be played in the UAE.

Reuters

July 22, 2014

Australia batsman Shaun Marsh is to have surgery on an injured elbow next week and will miss October’s Test series against Pakistan in the UAE, Cricket Australia said on Tuesday.

The 31-year-old, who played in the first two Tests of the series win in South Africa that put Australia back on top of the world rankings, suffered the ligament injury playing Twenty20 cricket in India.

“It’s a pretty significant injury,” team physiotherapist Alex Kountouris told the Cricket Australia website.

“Shaun has had a short period of rest, but it’s still a problem and we know that surgery takes a long time to recover.

“There’s a three-to-four month recovery period and we’ve chosen to go ahead with that because it gives him time to play for Western Australia and prepare for the World Cup and the Ashes next year.”

Lefthander Marsh, son of Australian opener Geoff, was a relative late-comer to Test cricket and made his debut against Sri Lanka in Pallekele in 2011.

In nine Tests since, he has scored 493 runs at an average of 32.86 with a high score of 148 against South Africa in the first Test victory at Centurion in February.

A pair of ducks in the second Test, however, saw him lose his place in the team for the decider in Cape Town to allow for the return of all rounder Shane Watson.

A more regular presence in the Australia one-day side with an average close to 40, Marsh is, if fit, likely to be included in the squad for the World Cup, which takes place next year in Australia and New Zealand.

He is expected to be back for the opening match of the four-Test series against India, which starts in Brisbane on December 4.

In other injury news, paceman Ryan Harris is continuing his recovery from knee surgery, with Kountouris hoping to have him ready for the India Test series.

“But until he starts running and bowling it’s very hard to predict,” he said.

Fellow fast bowler James Pattinson (back stress fracture) has resumed running but is yet to bowl in the nets.

“He’ll be playing some time in the summer. Whether it’s December, January or late November -- it’s hard to tell before we get him up and going,” Kountouris said.

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TOUR DE FRANCE INFO

Dates: July 1-23
Distance: 3,540km
Stages: 21
Number of teams: 22
Number of riders: 198

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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