The ICC board have instructed their management to focus on preparing to deliver the 2021 Twenty20 World Cup in the UAE.
This country has long been on standby for such an outcome, pending the Covid crisis in India.
India is scheduled to host the event, starting in October, but a decision will be made this month on whether to move it out of the country.
The tournament has been postponed once, with the coronavirus meaning it could not be played last year in Australia, the original hosting-rights holders.
Why UAE?
India more or less severed ties with UAE cricket between 2000 and 2018, with their national team playing just a brief one-day international series in 2005 to launch Zayed Cricket Stadium during that time.
Now, though, the two cricket boards have an increasingly fruitful special relationship.
That started when the Board of Control for Cricket in India switched the 2018 Asia Cup to Dubai and Abu Dhabi – essentially to accommodate fixtures against Pakistan. It took root further during the successful staging of the 2020 IPL season in the Emirates.
During that tournament, the BCCI and Emirates Cricket Board signed a hosting agreement to formalise the relationship between the two countries.
It meant the prospect of India staging more cricket in the UAE was heightened.
So when the health situation in India worsened in recent months, it increased the likelihood of switching matches to these shores.
First, that took the form of the remainder of the suspended 2021 IPL season, which will restart in the UAE in September. And now it seems probable that a similar fate will happen with the T20 global showpiece.
How do India retain hosting rights?
In confirming that they are pressing ahead with plans to switch to the UAE, the ICC said “the BCCI will remain the hosts of the event regardless of where the event is played”.
That might seem odd: if matches are in the UAE, surely they are the hosts?
However, it means that India will retain control of staging the matches and, crucially, revenue from it.
Each individual match at the T20 World Cup is said to be worth up to around $300,000 to the hosting board.
As such it was never going to be likely India would cede that income – although there will have to be at least some sort of revenue sharing, meaning ECB will still likely profit to some extent.
Will there be crowds?
It is safe to assume the ICC will want fans to be in attendance at the World Cup, and that does seem possible if the event is staged in the UAE.
The Pakistan Super League will proceed behind closed doors this month. That is understandable, given the extremely short timeframe the organisers had to plan the switch from Karachi to Abu Dhabi.
With so many other logistical issues that needed addressing first, it made sense that the extra burden of supporter attendance was left out of the proposal for staging the PSL.
However, major sport in the UAE is starting to welcome back spectators. Football’s President’s Cup final was played in front of a limited crowd in Al Ain last month.
And fans will be permitted to attend football World Cup qualifiers this month, up to a 30 per cent capacity, and provided they are full vaccinated and have a negative PCR test from within 48 hours.
What will the calendar look like?
The groundsmen of the UAE will have their work cut out over the next few months.
First the PSL is set to be played to a conclusion in Abu Dhabi this month.
That will see 20 T20 matches played at the Zayed Cricket Stadium over the space of around 17 days.
If the IPL and World Cup come here from September, that will account for more than 70 matches.
UAE have a proven track record for delivering a high volume of matches across their three established venues in Abu Dhabi, Sharjah and Dubai.
So staging those matches would certainly be doable. Preliminary round matches involving the likes of Scotland, Netherlands, Papua New Guinea, Ireland, Namibia and Oman would be well suited to the grounds at the ICC Academy in Dubai, and on the outer fields in Abu Dhabi.
However, the ICC have said they are looking at an extra option to ease the load.
Where else in the region?
The ICC said they are pressing ahead with planning for the event in UAE, “with the possibility of including another venue in the Middle East”.
India had proposed nine venues for the T20 World Cup, which seems unworkable given the Covid-related problems that travel created during the IPL.
Cross-border, quarantine-free travel could be problematic if the ICC are considering other options in the region.
In an ideal situation, Oman Cricket Academy in Al Amerat, just outside Muscat, would appear to fit the ICC's criteria.
The scenic venue has superb playing and practice facilities, and has staged ODI and T20I cricket, although it has no permanent spectator facilities.
Qatar has a 13,000-seater cricket stadium. Saudi Arabia has one cricket oval of note, and plans to develop the sport, but would be unlikely to be considered.
U19 WORLD CUP, WEST INDIES
UAE group fixtures (all in St Kitts)
Saturday 15 January: v Canada
Thursday 20 January: v England
Saturday 22 January: v Bangladesh
UAE squad
Alishan Sharafu (captain), Shival Bawa, Jash Giyanani, Sailles Jaishankar, Nilansh Keswani, Aayan Khan, Punya Mehra, Ali Naseer, Ronak Panoly, Dhruv Parashar, Vinayak Raghavan, Soorya Sathish, Aryansh Sharma, Adithya Shetty, Kai Smith
The specs
BMW M8 Competition Coupe
Engine 4.4-litre twin-turbo V8
Power 625hp at 6,000rpm
Torque 750Nm from 1,800-5,800rpm
Gearbox Eight-speed paddleshift auto
Acceleration 0-100kph in 3.2 sec
Top speed 305kph
Fuel economy, combined 10.6L / 100km
Price from Dh700,000 (estimate)
On sale Jan/Feb 2020
Rooney's club record
At Everton Appearances: 77; Goals: 17
At Manchester United Appearances: 559; Goals: 253
What is Reform?
Reform is a right-wing, populist party led by Nigel Farage, a former MEP who won a seat in the House of Commons last year at his eighth attempt and a prominent figure in the campaign for the UK to leave the European Union.
It was founded in 2018 and originally called the Brexit Party.
Many of its members previously belonged to UKIP or the mainstream Conservatives.
After Brexit took place, the party focused on the reformation of British democracy.
Former Tory deputy chairman Lee Anderson became its first MP after defecting in March 2024.
The party gained support from Elon Musk, and had hoped the tech billionaire would make a £100m donation. However, Mr Musk changed his mind and called for Mr Farage to step down as leader in a row involving the US tycoon's support for far-right figurehead Tommy Robinson who is in prison for contempt of court.
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What Super Bowl LIII
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When Sunday (start time is 3.30am on Monday UAE time)
The Little Things
Directed by: John Lee Hancock
Starring: Denzel Washington, Rami Malek, Jared Leto
Four stars
Company%20profile
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EName%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Belong%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Dubai%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounders%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Michael%20Askew%20and%20Matthew%20Gaziano%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Technology%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETotal%20funding%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20%243.5%20million%20from%20crowd%20funding%20and%20angel%20investors%3Cstrong%3E%3Cbr%3ENumber%20of%20employees%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2012%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The specs: 2018 Mercedes-Benz GLA
Price, base / as tested Dh150,900 / Dh173,600
Engine 2.0L inline four-cylinder
Transmission Seven-speed automatic
Power 211hp @ 5,500rpm
Torque 350Nm @ 1,200rpm
Fuel economy, combined 6.4L / 100km
Global state-owned investor ranking by size
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F1 The Movie
Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
Everton%20Fixtures
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What can victims do?
Always use only regulated platforms
Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion
Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)
Report to local authorities
Warn others to prevent further harm
Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence
Honeymoonish
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Breast cancer in men: the facts
1) Breast cancer is men is rare but can develop rapidly. It usually occurs in those over the ages of 60, but can occasionally affect younger men.
2) Symptoms can include a lump, discharge, swollen glands or a rash.
3) People with a history of cancer in the family can be more susceptible.
4) Treatments include surgery and chemotherapy but early diagnosis is the key.
5) Anyone concerned is urged to contact their doctor
History's medical milestones
1799 - First small pox vaccine administered
1846 - First public demonstration of anaesthesia in surgery
1861 - Louis Pasteur published his germ theory which proved that bacteria caused diseases
1895 - Discovery of x-rays
1923 - Heart valve surgery performed successfully for first time
1928 - Alexander Fleming discovers penicillin
1953 - Structure of DNA discovered
1952 - First organ transplant - a kidney - takes place
1954 - Clinical trials of birth control pill
1979 - MRI, or magnetic resonance imaging, scanned used to diagnose illness and injury.
1998 - The first adult live-donor liver transplant is carried out
Top financial tips for graduates
Araminta Robertson, of the Financially Mint blog, shares her financial advice for university leavers:
1. Build digital or technical skills: After graduation, people can find it extremely hard to find jobs. From programming to digital marketing, your early twenties are for building skills. Future employers will want people with tech skills.
2. Side hustle: At 16, I lived in a village and started teaching online, as well as doing work as a virtual assistant and marketer. There are six skills you can use online: translation; teaching; programming; digital marketing; design and writing. If you master two, you’ll always be able to make money.
3. Networking: Knowing how to make connections is extremely useful. Use LinkedIn to find people who have the job you want, connect and ask to meet for coffee. Ask how they did it and if they know anyone who can help you. I secured quite a few clients this way.
4. Pay yourself first: The minute you receive any income, put about 15 per cent aside into a savings account you won’t touch, to go towards your emergency fund or to start investing. I do 20 per cent. It helped me start saving immediately.
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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RACE CARD
6.30pm: Baniyas Group 2 (PA) Dh 97,500 (Dirt) 1,400m.
7.05pm Maiden (TB) Dh 82,500 (D) 1,200m
7.40pm Maiden (TB) Dh 82,500 (D) 1,400m
8.15pm Handicap (TB) Dh 82,500 (D) 1,400m
8.50pm Rated Conditions (TB) Dh 120,000 (D) 1,600m
9.25pm Handicap (TB) Dh 95,000 (D) 1,200m
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Company%20Profile
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Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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Maratha Arabians win by 47 runs
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Tottenham v Ajax, Tuesday, 11pm (UAE).
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'THE WORST THING YOU CAN EAT'
Trans fat is typically found in fried and baked goods, but you may be consuming more than you think.
Powdered coffee creamer, microwave popcorn and virtually anything processed with a crust is likely to contain it, as this guide from Mayo Clinic outlines:
Baked goods - Most cakes, cookies, pie crusts and crackers contain shortening, which is usually made from partially hydrogenated vegetable oil. Ready-made frosting is another source of trans fat.
Snacks - Potato, corn and tortilla chips often contain trans fat. And while popcorn can be a healthy snack, many types of packaged or microwave popcorn use trans fat to help cook or flavour the popcorn.
Fried food - Foods that require deep frying — french fries, doughnuts and fried chicken — can contain trans fat from the oil used in the cooking process.
Refrigerator dough - Products such as canned biscuits and cinnamon rolls often contain trans fat, as do frozen pizza crusts.
Creamer and margarine - Nondairy coffee creamer and stick margarines also may contain partially hydrogenated vegetable oils.
MATCH INFO
Fixture: Thailand v UAE, Tuesday, 4pm (UAE)
TV: Abu Dhabi Sports
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Why the Tourist Club?
Originally, The Club (which many people chose to call the “British Club”) was the only place where one could use the beach with changing rooms and a shower, and get refreshments.
In the early 1970s, the Government of Abu Dhabi wanted to give more people a place to get together on the beach, with some facilities for children. The place chosen was where the annual boat race was held, which Sheikh Zayed always attended and which brought crowds of locals and expatriates to the stretch of beach to the left of Le Méridien and the Marina.
It started with a round two-storey building, erected in about two weeks by Orient Contracting for Sheikh Zayed to use at one these races. Soon many facilities were planned and built, and members were invited to join.
Why it was called “Nadi Al Siyahi” is beyond me. But it is likely that one wanted to convey the idea that this was open to all comers. Because there was no danger of encountering alcohol on the premises, unlike at The Club, it was a place in particular for the many Arab expatriate civil servants to join. Initially the fees were very low and membership was offered free to many people, too.
Eventually there was a skating rink, bowling and many other amusements.
Frauke Heard-Bey is a historian and has lived in Abu Dhabi since 1968.
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