Jonathan Figy believes a “good performance” in the Emirates D50 will take him closer to a UAE national team return.
The left-handed opener has been among runs in the tournaments organised by the Abu Dhabi Cricket Council since his return from the UK after completing his degree in mathematics and statistics at Leeds University.
Figy, 21, is hopeful in replicating his performances in those tournaments going into the Emirates Cricket Board’s six-team Emirates D50 opener against Dubai at Ajman Malek Oval on Wednesday.
Figy remains the only UAE player to score a century, against Canada, in the U19 World Cup. He played two ODI’s against Scotland in the ICC World Cricket League 2 in Dubai in December 2019 and Namibia in the same competition in Oman in January 2020.
His cricket during his time at the Leeds University was interrupted following the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic and then the final year of his degree. He’s now taken a break from pursuing further studies to have another go at cricket.
“The cricket season in my first year at the university got cancelled and only half the season took place in the following year, and I concentrated on my studies in the final year of my degree,” Figy told The National.
“I had a three-year course in mathematics and statistics, and I thought might as well complete my degree and get back to cricket. I have decided to take a break without doing further studies for now, to give cricket another go. Let’s see how it goes.”
Figy has been back in Abu Dhabi for more than six months and is progressing well. “The Emirates D50 is an opportunity to get back to the national team. That’s my aspiration and I’m working hard for it,” he said.
“The first thing that I realised when I returned to Abu Dhabi after three years in Britain was, I really was out of shape. I started doing my workouts in the gym four to five days a week, and trained in the evenings at the Zayed Cricket Academy nets, where it all began for me.
“I worked on my skills and spent more time on my fitness. All that combined and I was able to score and bat long in the domestic tournaments. I did some coaching in return for the facilities the academy provided me. I enjoy coaching kids and that’s something I may do at some point of time.”
Figy played a massive role for his team Etihad Shaheen to reach all three finals, winning two. He was Player of the Tournament in the ADCC Super Cup, and made scores of 127 not out, 55, and 61 not out, for his team to emerge winners of the Ramadan Rumble two weeks ago.
“I just want to go out there and do my best in the D50,” he said. “People are going to expect a lot from me, and to be honest, I expect a lot from myself. I know what my job is. I need to go out there and score lot of runs if I want to be in the national team.
“More than that is I want to score for my team to reach the top three spots to earn them a spot in the knockout round.
“I have been practising my bowling so I can be useful with the ball, too. I used to bowl quite regularly when I was at school but later concentrated on my batting. That can add more into my game and add more value to the teams I play for.
“My fitness work is showing when I play as I’m able to score and bat long, and run fast between the wickets. When you are looking at top-flight cricket you need to keep working harder all the time to maintain the high levels and the demands of the game.”
Figy has been named vice-captain to the experienced Ali Abid for Abu Dhabi. He will also lead the team in the last two league round games against Sharjah and Fujairah as Abid leaves for Pakistan for his marriage.
Figy wants to take it one step at a time on his cricketing journey, and playing for the UAE and professionally has always been one of his objectives.
“Captaining and analysing the matches I play is something that I enjoy,” he said.
“I’m thankful for Abu Dhabi Cricket Council for providing me with this opportunity. It’s good exposure for me, to potentially lead Abu Dhabi for a long time and hopefully lead them to success.”
“I’m just going to enjoy leading the team and I’m sure to receive the support of my seniors in the squad.
“We have a great bunch of cricketers and I’m sure everyone will support and share their experiences with me to take the team forward. We have a lot of experienced cricketers and can rely on them.”
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Why it pays to compare
A comparison of sending Dh20,000 from the UAE using two different routes at the same time - the first direct from a UAE bank to a bank in Germany, and the second from the same UAE bank via an online platform to Germany - found key differences in cost and speed. The transfers were both initiated on January 30.
Route 1: bank transfer
The UAE bank charged Dh152.25 for the Dh20,000 transfer. On top of that, their exchange rate margin added a difference of around Dh415, compared with the mid-market rate.
Total cost: Dh567.25 - around 2.9 per cent of the total amount
Total received: €4,670.30
Route 2: online platform
The UAE bank’s charge for sending Dh20,000 to a UK dirham-denominated account was Dh2.10. The exchange rate margin cost was Dh60, plus a Dh12 fee.
Total cost: Dh74.10, around 0.4 per cent of the transaction
Total received: €4,756
The UAE bank transfer was far quicker – around two to three working days, while the online platform took around four to five days, but was considerably cheaper. In the online platform transfer, the funds were also exposed to currency risk during the period it took for them to arrive.
In-demand jobs and monthly salaries
- Technology expert in robotics and automation: Dh20,000 to Dh40,000
- Energy engineer: Dh25,000 to Dh30,000
- Production engineer: Dh30,000 to Dh40,000
- Data-driven supply chain management professional: Dh30,000 to Dh50,000
- HR leader: Dh40,000 to Dh60,000
- Engineering leader: Dh30,000 to Dh55,000
- Project manager: Dh55,000 to Dh65,000
- Senior reservoir engineer: Dh40,000 to Dh55,000
- Senior drilling engineer: Dh38,000 to Dh46,000
- Senior process engineer: Dh28,000 to Dh38,000
- Senior maintenance engineer: Dh22,000 to Dh34,000
- Field engineer: Dh6,500 to Dh7,500
- Field supervisor: Dh9,000 to Dh12,000
- Field operator: Dh5,000 to Dh7,000
US PGA Championship in numbers
1 Joost Luiten produced a memorable hole in one at the par-three fourth in the first round.
2 To date, the only two players to win the PGA Championship after winning the week before are Rory McIlroy (2014 WGC-Bridgestone Invitational) and Tiger Woods (2007, WGC-Bridgestone Invitational). Hideki Matsuyama or Chris Stroud could have made it three.
3 Number of seasons without a major for McIlroy, who finished in a tie for 22nd.
4 Louis Oosthuizen has now finished second in all four of the game's major championships.
5 In the fifth hole of the final round, McIlroy holed his longest putt of the week - from 16ft 8in - for birdie.
6 For the sixth successive year, play was disrupted by bad weather with a delay of one hour and 43 minutes on Friday.
7 Seven under par (64) was the best round of the week, shot by Matsuyama and Francesco Molinari on Day 2.
8 Number of shots taken by Jason Day on the 18th hole in round three after a risky recovery shot backfired.
9 Jon Rahm's age in months the last time Phil Mickelson missed the cut in the US PGA, in 1995.
10 Jimmy Walker's opening round as defending champion was a 10-over-par 81.
11 The par-four 11th coincidentally ranked as the 11th hardest hole overall with a scoring average of 4.192.
12 Paul Casey was a combined 12 under par for his first round in this year's majors.
13 The average world ranking of the last 13 PGA winners before this week was 25. Kevin Kisner began the week ranked 25th.
14 The world ranking of Justin Thomas before his victory.
15 Of the top 15 players after 54 holes, only Oosthuizen had previously won a major.
16 The par-four 16th marks the start of Quail Hollow's so-called "Green Mile" of finishing holes, some of the toughest in golf.
17 The first round scoring average of the last 17 major champions was 67.2. Kisner and Thorbjorn Olesen shot 67 on day one at Quail Hollow.
18 For the first time in 18 majors, the eventual winner was over par after round one (Thomas shot 73).
The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
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Match info:
Leicester City 1
Ghezzal (63')
Liverpool 2
Mane (10'), Firmino (45')
MATCH INFO
Manchester City 1 Chelsea 0
De Bruyne (70')
Man of the Match: Kevin de Bruyne (Manchester City)
'Top Gun: Maverick'
Rating: 4/5
Directed by: Joseph Kosinski
Starring: Tom Cruise, Val Kilmer, Jennifer Connelly, Jon Hamm, Miles Teller, Glen Powell, Ed Harris
