When David Warner was sat in the stands in Dubai five weeks ago waving a flag, some critics might have suggested it should have been a white one.
His form for Sunrisers Hyderabad in the Indian Premier League had been so dire, he had lost the captaincy of the side to Kane Williamson. He had lost his place in the XI, and been jettisoned from the match day squad, too.
Because of rules over how many players from each side were allowed on site at each game, that meant watching some matches on TV from the team hotel.
By the end of the campaign, he had at least made it back as far as the team’s box at the Dubai International Stadium, from where he could maintain appearances by waving an orange Sunrisers flag.
Through it all was a feeling of foreboding. Warner has form for going off the rails in times of stress in the past. And still his IPL future remains unclear.
A little before that time, Australia’s T20 captain, Aaron Finch, made a call to the team’s coach, Justin Langer. During it, he says, he made a prediction.
“Without a word of a lie, I promise you, I called Justin Langer a few months ago and said, ‘Don’t worry about Davey, he’ll be man of the tournament’,” Finch said.
“I thought Adam Zampa should have been man of the tournament personally. But [Warner] is a great player. He is one of the all-time great batters.
“He is a fighter. He is someone who, when his back is against the wall, that is when you get the very, very best of David Warner.
“It was a special, special tournament for him, especially the last couple of knocks.”
Finch’s suggestion that Warner excels in tough circumstances was evidenced in his end to the competition.
He made 89 not out in the must-win last pool match against West Indies, then a vital 49 against Pakistan in the semi-final.
In the final, he made 53 from 38 balls as Australia chased 173 to beat New Zealand with eight wickets to spare.
His effort in the final was trumped by Mitch Marsh, with whom he shared a telling alliance worth 92 for the second wicket.
Marsh was named player of the match for his 77 not out, which included the winning runs.
“[Marsh] is someone who loves a contest, loves a challenge, and we just backed him from the start,” Finch said.
“We committed to him batting No 3 for a long time, and he knew that. That is all you need sometimes, just a little bit of backing and some confidence from everybody else.
“I think it was the first ball he faced in the first practice game against New Zealand, which he also hit for six [as he did in the final].
“It showed the confidence he has, and the confidence we have in each other. It was brilliant.”
Team of the tournament
What the law says
Micro-retirement is not a recognised concept or employment status under Federal Decree Law No. 33 of 2021 on the Regulation of Labour Relations (as amended) (UAE Labour Law). As such, it reflects a voluntary work-life balance practice, rather than a recognised legal employment category, according to Dilini Loku, senior associate for law firm Gateley Middle East.
“Some companies may offer formal sabbatical policies or career break programmes; however, beyond such arrangements, there is no automatic right or statutory entitlement to extended breaks,” she explains.
“Any leave taken beyond statutory entitlements, such as annual leave, is typically regarded as unpaid leave in accordance with Article 33 of the UAE Labour Law. While employees may legally take unpaid leave, such requests are subject to the employer’s discretion and require approval.”
If an employee resigns to pursue micro-retirement, the employment contract is terminated, and the employer is under no legal obligation to rehire the employee in the future unless specific contractual agreements are in place (such as return-to-work arrangements), which are generally uncommon, Ms Loku adds.
What sanctions would be reimposed?
Under ‘snapback’, measures imposed on Iran by the UN Security Council in six resolutions would be restored, including:
- An arms embargo
- A ban on uranium enrichment and reprocessing
- A ban on launches and other activities with ballistic missiles capable of delivering nuclear weapons, as well as ballistic missile technology transfer and technical assistance
- A targeted global asset freeze and travel ban on Iranian individuals and entities
- Authorisation for countries to inspect Iran Air Cargo and Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines cargoes for banned goods
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-final, second leg result:
Ajax 2-3 Tottenham
Tottenham advance on away goals rule after tie ends 3-3 on aggregate
Final: June 1, Madrid
Infobox
Western Region Asia Cup Qualifier, Al Amerat, Oman
The two finalists advance to the next stage of qualifying, in Malaysia in August
Results
UAE beat Iran by 10 wickets
Kuwait beat Saudi Arabia by eight wickets
Oman beat Bahrain by nine wickets
Qatar beat Maldives by 106 runs
Monday fixtures
UAE v Kuwait, Iran v Saudi Arabia, Oman v Qatar, Maldives v Bahrain
Dubai works towards better air quality by 2021
Dubai is on a mission to record good air quality for 90 per cent of the year – up from 86 per cent annually today – by 2021.
The municipality plans to have seven mobile air-monitoring stations by 2020 to capture more accurate data in hourly and daily trends of pollution.
These will be on the Palm Jumeirah, Al Qusais, Muhaisnah, Rashidiyah, Al Wasl, Al Quoz and Dubai Investment Park.
“It will allow real-time responding for emergency cases,” said Khaldoon Al Daraji, first environment safety officer at the municipality.
“We’re in a good position except for the cases that are out of our hands, such as sandstorms.
“Sandstorms are our main concern because the UAE is just a receiver.
“The hotspots are Iran, Saudi Arabia and southern Iraq, but we’re working hard with the region to reduce the cycle of sandstorm generation.”
Mr Al Daraji said monitoring as it stood covered 47 per cent of Dubai.
There are 12 fixed stations in the emirate, but Dubai also receives information from monitors belonging to other entities.
“There are 25 stations in total,” Mr Al Daraji said.
“We added new technology and equipment used for the first time for the detection of heavy metals.
“A hundred parameters can be detected but we want to expand it to make sure that the data captured can allow a baseline study in some areas to ensure they are well positioned.”
Dubai Women's Tour teams
Agolico BMC
Andy Schleck Cycles-Immo Losch
Aromitalia Basso Bikes Vaiano
Cogeas Mettler Look
Doltcini-Van Eyck Sport
Hitec Products – Birk Sport
Kazakhstan National Team
Kuwait Cycling Team
Macogep Tornatech Girondins de Bordeaux
Minsk Cycling Club
Pannonia Regional Team (Fehérvár)
Team Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
Team Ciclotel
UAE Women’s Team
Under 23 Kazakhstan Team
Wheel Divas Cycling Team
