Playing cricket in June in the UAE is rare enough. Starting at 5pm is something different altogether.
Fair to say, there was a sizeable slice of trepidation about the conditions the sides were going to face, ahead of the first afternoon match since the PSL resumed in Abu Dhabi.
Teams have spoken of plans to wear ice vests and fill up on coconut water, while leeway has been given for extra breaks. The players themselves might have been minded to move as little as possible, then go and sit in a fridge.
If the tactics revolved around conserving energy, then Multan Sultans' spinner Imran Tahir clearly did not get the memo.
When he took the wicket of Karachi Kings batsman Najibullah Zadran, which more or less settled the game in Multan's favour, he set off on the sort of lung-busting sprint around the ground in which he specialises.
Sure, his teammates were chuffed. This was a vital moment in a match that Multan needed to win in order to stay within reach of the playoff contenders.
But when Tahir went tearing off in celebration, most of them were happy to watch from a standing position, and shout their congratulations instead.
It makes sense that Tahir would feel comfortable in this climate. He has spent more time than most acclimatising.
The South Africa leg-spinner has been based in Dubai for much of this year. And, in between jetting off to the world's leading T20 leagues, he has often turned out in recreational club matches in the UAE.
No wonder he was immediately in sync for Multan once the PSL restarted.
He took two crucial wickets – those of Martin Guptill and the Afghan power-hitter Najibullah – and later affected the run out which saw the end of Chadwick Walton.
As it turned out, fears about extreme temperatures were unfounded. It was a toasty – but manageable – 36 degrees when Karachi’s captain Imad Wasim sent down the first ball, with a strong cross breeze coming across the ground from the coast.
On the other side of the boundary, players huddled closely together under parasols.
Play was briefly held up when the parasol of one of the cameramen was blown onto the playing area.
Admittedly, running between the wickets must have been tough. During a break after eight overs, Rilee Rossouw had a towel draped over him that had come straight from the ice bucket.
One player – Islamabad United’s Usman Khawaja – had suggested before the tournament that these conditions would mean batsmen would find going harder than bowlers.
And yet Multan found things just to their liking. Having been sent in to bat by Karachi, they looked comfortable in amassing 176 for five.
Rossouw earned the man of the match award for his quick-fire innings of 44, and his score was matched by Khushdil Shah, who was undefeated at the end of the innings
The defending champions made a tepid start to their reply, with Babar Azam looking uncharacteristically rusty on his return to the crease at the start.
Pakistan’s captain failed to score off his first nine balls, and was lucky to avoid being given out LBW on the last of those. He got moving from that point on, and eventually ended up not out on 85 at the close of the innings. But his side fell 12 short in their halting run-chase.
The win was just the second of this disrupted campaign for Multan, who topped the table last season, and might have won a first title had Covid not delayed the playoffs.
They have arrived in the capital with a raft of changes from the squad which started the tournament – including Mohammed Wasim, the aspiring UAE player who was benched for this encounter.
Success against Karachi put them within two points of fourth-placed Islamabad, meaning they remain in the hunt for a place in the knockout phase.
Indoor cricket in a nutshell
Indoor Cricket World Cup - Sep 16-20, Insportz, Dubai
16 Indoor cricket matches are 16 overs per side
8 There are eight players per team
9 There have been nine Indoor Cricket World Cups for men. Australia have won every one.
5 Five runs are deducted from the score when a wickets falls
4 Batsmen bat in pairs, facing four overs per partnership
Scoring In indoor cricket, runs are scored by way of both physical and bonus runs. Physical runs are scored by both batsmen completing a run from one crease to the other. Bonus runs are scored when the ball hits a net in different zones, but only when at least one physical run is score.
Zones
A Front net, behind the striker and wicketkeeper: 0 runs
B Side nets, between the striker and halfway down the pitch: 1 run
C Side nets between halfway and the bowlers end: 2 runs
D Back net: 4 runs on the bounce, 6 runs on the full
Red flags
- Promises of high, fixed or 'guaranteed' returns.
- Unregulated structured products or complex investments often used to bypass traditional safeguards.
- Lack of clear information, vague language, no access to audited financials.
- Overseas companies targeting investors in other jurisdictions - this can make legal recovery difficult.
- Hard-selling tactics - creating urgency, offering 'exclusive' deals.
Courtesy: Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching
Gothia Cup 2025
4,872 matches
1,942 teams
116 pitches
76 nations
26 UAE teams
15 Lebanese teams
2 Kuwaiti teams
The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
How to register as a donor
1) Organ donors can register on the Hayat app, run by the Ministry of Health and Prevention
2) There are about 11,000 patients in the country in need of organ transplants
3) People must be over 21. Emiratis and residents can register.
4) The campaign uses the hashtag #donate_hope
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WHAT IS A BLACK HOLE?
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4. The biggest black holes lurk at the centre of many galaxies, including our own
5. Astronomers believe that when the universe was very young, black holes affected how galaxies formed
Tearful appearance
Chancellor Rachel Reeves set markets on edge as she appeared visibly distraught in parliament on Wednesday.
Legislative setbacks for the government have blown a new hole in the budgetary calculations at a time when the deficit is stubbornly large and the economy is struggling to grow.
She appeared with Keir Starmer on Thursday and the pair embraced, but he had failed to give her his backing as she cried a day earlier.
A spokesman said her upset demeanour was due to a personal matter.
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Specs
Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request
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The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre flat-six
Torque: 450Nm at 6,100rpm
Transmission: 7-speed PDK auto or 6-speed manual
Fuel economy, combined: 13.8L/100km
On sale: Available to order now
Specs
Engine: Electric motor generating 54.2kWh (Cooper SE and Aceman SE), 64.6kW (Countryman All4 SE)
Power: 218hp (Cooper and Aceman), 313hp (Countryman)
Torque: 330Nm (Cooper and Aceman), 494Nm (Countryman)
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh158,000 (Cooper), Dh168,000 (Aceman), Dh190,000 (Countryman)
Read more about the coronavirus
Seemar’s top six for the Dubai World Cup Carnival:
1. Reynaldothewizard
2. North America
3. Raven’s Corner
4. Hawkesbury
5. New Maharajah
6. Secret Ambition
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
Company%20profile
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The lowdown
Badla
Rating: 2.5/5
Produced by: Red Chillies, Azure Entertainment
Director: Sujoy Ghosh
Cast: Amitabh Bachchan, Taapsee Pannu, Amrita Singh, Tony Luke
57%20Seconds
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GAC GS8 Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh149,900
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
Emergency
Director: Kangana Ranaut
Stars: Kangana Ranaut, Anupam Kher, Shreyas Talpade, Milind Soman, Mahima Chaudhry
Rating: 2/5
Closing the loophole on sugary drinks
As The National reported last year, non-fizzy sugared drinks were not covered when the original tax was introduced in 2017. Sports drinks sold in supermarkets were found to contain, on average, 20 grams of sugar per 500ml bottle.
The non-fizzy drink AriZona Iced Tea contains 65 grams of sugar – about 16 teaspoons – per 680ml can. The average can costs about Dh6, which would rise to Dh9.
Drinks such as Starbucks Bottled Mocha Frappuccino contain 31g of sugar in 270ml, while Nescafe Mocha in a can contains 15.6g of sugar in a 240ml can.
Flavoured water, long-life fruit juice concentrates, pre-packaged sweetened coffee drinks fall under the ‘sweetened drink’ category
Not taxed:
Freshly squeezed fruit juices, ground coffee beans, tea leaves and pre-prepared flavoured milkshakes do not come under the ‘sweetened drink’ band.
