Seldom has a batter exited the playing field with such a look of satisfaction on their face after being dismissed before a game has been won.
Jonny Bairstow departed the crease with 27 runs still to get for England to win the second Test against New Zealand on Tuesday afternoon at Trent Bridge.
The contented smile which he wore all the way back to the dressing room was well earned.
A game that had appeared all but unwinnable when England conceded 553 in the first innings was now as good as sealed.
And Bairstow himself had just played one of the all-time epics of English Test history.
He signed for 136 from 92 balls. Not long after, England were signing for a win which puts them 2-0 up in the series with one game still to go. That, too, against the side who became the first world Test champions last year.
How sweet the rebirth of England’s Test team has been so far.
When Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum were appointed to transform this side at the start of the summer, they warned it might take a while.
Two Tests in, it already feels like they are a side revolutionised.
Judged by the scenes beyond the boundary in Nottingham, the glory days really are already here again. A packed-out crowd, despite it being the second day of the working week, witnessed the highest ever fourth-innings run chase in a Trent Bridge Test.
The ground’s authorities had played their part in the upsurge of goodwill, by offering free admission, despite a classic day’s play being in the offing.
For the first two sessions of it, the sides appeared evenly matches. Starting the day with three wickets left available to them, New Zealand managed to eke out 284 in their second innings, and thus set England a target of 299 from a minimum of 72 overs.
By the time they reached the tea break, that target had been whittled down to 160 off 40 overs, with the home side four wickets down.
Given what occurred from there on, it was a wonder New Zealand ever thought they stood a chance.
When English cricket started its reset at the start of the summer, it was said the Test team need to be more like their limited-overs colleagues.
That was taken to mean, try to match the success of a side who are world champs themselves in the 50-over format, and contenders for the same in the T20 sphere.
From the evidence of Trent Bridge, they have taken it to mean play like them, too.
The post-tea blitz from Bairstow and Stokes was a match for any that the duo – who are two of England’s white-ball greats – have ever produced in the limited-overs arena.
The remaining 160 runs required for victory were knocked off in 16 overs. Ten an over, in the final session of a Test match, on a fifth-day wicket. It was stunning, violent and, for a country whose Test team has been on its knees for so long, uplifting.
Amid his flurry of sixes, Bairstow threatened to break a record that has stood for 120 years. In the end, he missed Gilbert Jessop’s fastest Test century by an England batter by just one delivery.
By the time he did depart, he had laced seven sixes into the happy throng in the stands.
He might have left the scene before the job was completed, but England had just the man for that job. It was left to Stokes, who finished unbeaten on 75 from 70 balls, to hit the winning runs.
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
Company profile
Company name: Dharma
Date started: 2018
Founders: Charaf El Mansouri, Nisma Benani, Leah Howe
Based: Abu Dhabi
Sector: TravelTech
Funding stage: Pre-series A
Investors: Convivialite Ventures, BY Partners, Shorooq Partners, L& Ventures, Flat6Labs
The burning issue
The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE.
Read part four: an affection for classic cars lives on
Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins
Read part one: how cars came to the UAE
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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Winners
Ballon d’Or (Men’s)
Ousmane Dembélé (Paris Saint-Germain / France)
Ballon d’Or Féminin (Women’s)
Aitana Bonmatí (Barcelona / Spain)
Kopa Trophy (Best player under 21 – Men’s)
Lamine Yamal (Barcelona / Spain)
Best Young Women’s Player
Vicky López (Barcelona / Spain)
Yashin Trophy (Best Goalkeeper – Men’s)
Gianluigi Donnarumma (Paris Saint-Germain and Manchester City / Italy)
Best Women’s Goalkeeper
Hannah Hampton (England / Aston Villa and Chelsea)
Men’s Coach of the Year
Luis Enrique (Paris Saint-Germain)
Women’s Coach of the Year
Sarina Wiegman (England)
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Zayed Sustainability Prize
ONCE UPON A TIME IN GAZA
Starring: Nader Abd Alhay, Majd Eid, Ramzi Maqdisi
Directors: Tarzan and Arab Nasser
Rating: 4.5/5
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
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Mina Cup winners
Under 12 – Minerva Academy
Under 14 – Unam Pumas
Under 16 – Fursan Hispania
Under 18 – Madenat
ABU DHABI T10: DAY TWO
Bangla Tigers v Deccan Gladiators (3.30pm)
Delhi Bulls v Karnataka Tuskers (5.45pm)
Northern Warriors v Qalandars (8.00pm)
The specs
Engine: Dual 180kW and 300kW front and rear motors
Power: 480kW
Torque: 850Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh359,900 ($98,000)
On sale: Now
The Rub of Time: Bellow, Nabokov, Hitchens, Travolta, Trump and Other Pieces 1986-2016
Martin Amis,
Jonathan Cape
Lexus LX700h specs
Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor
Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh590,000
Points to remember
- Debate the issue, don't attack the person
- Build the relationship and dialogue by seeking to find common ground
- Express passion for the issue but be aware of when you're losing control or when there's anger. If there is, pause and take some time out.
- Listen actively without interrupting
- Avoid assumptions, seek understanding, ask questions
THE SIXTH SENSE
Starring: Bruce Willis, Toni Collette, Hayley Joel Osment
Director: M. Night Shyamalan
Rating: 5/5
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Jaguar F-Pace SVR
Engine: 5-litre supercharged V8
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Power: 542bhp
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Manikarnika: The Queen of Jhansi
Director: Kangana Ranaut, Krish Jagarlamudi
Producer: Zee Studios, Kamal Jain
Cast: Kangana Ranaut, Ankita Lokhande, Danny Denzongpa, Atul Kulkarni
Rating: 2.5/5
Result
UAE (S. Tagliabue 90 1') 1-2 Uzbekistan (Shokhruz Norkhonov 48', 86')
Result
Tottenhan Hotspur 2 Roma 3
Tottenham: Winks 87', Janssen 90 1'
Roma 3
D Perotti 13' (pen), C Under 70', M Tumminello 90 2"
Various Artists
Habibi Funk: An Eclectic Selection Of Music From The Arab World (Habibi Funk)
The%20specs
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Name: Brendalle Belaza
From: Crossing Rubber, Philippines
Arrived in the UAE: 2007
Favourite place in Abu Dhabi: NYUAD campus
Favourite photography style: Street photography
Favourite book: Harry Potter
Results
United States beat UAE by three wickets
United States beat Scotland by 35 runs
UAE v Scotland – no result
United States beat UAE by 98 runs
Scotland beat United States by four wickets
Fixtures
Sunday, 10am, ICC Academy, Dubai - UAE v Scotland
Admission is free
