Last week I was in India and before I ventured out of my hotel for the day, I saw the first 15 overs of the third ODI between South Africa and India. Now there's no way I could have thought that the Little Master was going to rewrite the record books on this specific day, but from the beginning there was an inevitability about the way he was middling the ball.
You cannot heap enough praise on him for his achievement and it only took him 431 attempts to obtain it. That's how special this feat was, by a special man. Comparisons to Donald Bradman are natural but have left Tendulkar a little uneasy.
It seemed like his bat had somehow sprouted an extra three inches on either side and the ball that Dale Steyn was fruitlessly trying to pelt down had become the size of a grape. Much has been written about this genius and a genius of the game he is.
His stats are there for all to see and he can lay claim to being the greatest batting star of his generation. But is he? The many Indian followers of cricket will be up in arms at that statement, but hang on a minute because I want to shed some light on something. Rather, someone. Ricky Ponting. This Aussie batsman, vertically challenged as he is, but with a desire and fortitude carved from granite is hot on the heels of Sachin.
This next part will only take a minute I promise, but requires me to get a little complex statistic wise. So bear with me, don your anorak and let's get in to it.
Sachin has played 271 innings in Test cricket for 13,447 runs, average of 55.56. Ponting has played 240 innings in Test cricket for 11,859, average of 55.67. So if we extrapolate out Ponting's numbers to match Tendulkar's 271 innings, Ponting's numbers, based on his averages would read, Ponting 271 innings for 13,584. 137 more runs than Tendulkar. Hope you haven't fallen asleep yet but you get the idea of what I'm saying. Ponting and Tendulkar stand apart from their peers. Players of their generation. However, which one stands taller?
I'm not a big one for dealing in hypotheticals, a bit like saying "if I had guessed the correct lottery numbers then I'd have won 10 million dollars last week". Ponting will have 31 more innings to match where Tendulkar is now and time will tell if his numbers stack up.
When Ponting made his Test debut in 1995 against Sri Lanka, he had that look of something special. Donned only with a cap, the precious "Baggy Green", he announced himself with a well compiled 96. I saw that match and as I was a youngster playing at the time I couldn't wait to have a crack at this new rising star.
You see, that's the testosterone side of sport. New kid on the block and he's an Aussie and he's batting in a cap at the WACA! The home of speed. The shear tenacity to not respect a quick pitch. "This guy definitely has to come down a peg or two" were my initial thoughts.
It wouldn't be until the season of 1997/98 that I would get my first look at Ponting. I was still agitated by the whole cap-wearing thing from his Test debut but here in Brisbane, for the first Test of the series I would get to have my say. Stephen Fleming won the toss and it was a green Brisbane wicket, humid conditions and ideal for bowling.
At lunch we had the Aussies four down and, with a bit of luck, I had taken all four.
Ponting was at the crease and he had worn a helmet. Good man. He scored a few after lunch, but then Simon Doull took his wicket. This guy isn't much cop we thought. He then blazed us all over the park in the second innings to set up the Aussie declaration and was particularly severe through the leg side.
At our team meeting for the second Test in Perth we stated that we had to keep away from his legs and bowl a channel about four inches outside off stump. The next two Tests he nicked off to slip and I honestly thought this guy was going to be a good player, but he was vulnerable in this area.
He might become a good Test player, but too deficient. Hmmm. He kind of worked on that and the next time we met he got 157.
Like all great players, Ponting has a tendency to hit on-side. The reason these great players are great, is because they take deliveries from the stumps and hit them through the area of the cricket field that is least protected - the on-side.
In most cases when these big boys are playing in their zone, and from another world, they will take balls from four inches outside off stump and deposit it through the leg side.
Playing this way for the not-so-gifted will result in many LBW's and a short career. These players back their eye and with their wonderful balance know that they will not miss the ball.
Ponting is an aggressive competitor. I don't think he is a good captain, a case of the best player becoming the skipper. However, he is the best batsman alongside Bradman to have played for his country. He is prickly and tough. A rebel in his earlier days, he curbed his ways and sought redemption in plastering bowling attacks around the globe.
Is he better than Tendulkar? There's really not much in it. Ponting, statistically, is as good, but he has won World Cups and trophies, but has played in a better team, better parts of the whole, than Tendulkar's India. I always felt when bowling to Ponting that he could make a mistake.
Now I'm not saying he would, but he could. With Tendulkar it just always seemed he was so in control. I honestly felt at times with Tendulkar that I had to whack myself across the face to stop watching him when I was bowling to him. Get him out, don't admire him. But it was hard to not watch pure genius first hand.
So it's Tendulkar for me. And comparisons to "The Don"? You're damn right.
@Email:sports@thenational.ae
Test-match record
Steve Waugh once said he expected Ponting to overtake Tendulkar as the leading run-scorer in Test cricket but he is running out of time. Ponting has a better average (55.67 to 55.56) but trails Tendulkar by 1,588 runs
One-day record
Tendulkar changed the ODI landscape with his double hundred and possesses a far superior record. But Ponting has the bragging rights when it comes to medals having won the World Cup and Champions Trophy
Temperament
Ponting was a hot head in his early days and he blew a fuse famously in the Ashes 2005 when he was run out by Gary Pratt. Tendulkar, on the other hand, is unflappable. It is hard to recall a spat with a teammate or pponent.
Challenges
The Little Master claims he is not concerned with records but he will know he is just seven centuries short of 100 in international cricket. Ponting, meanwhile, is yet to win an Ashes series in England as a captain.
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Best Men's Player of the Year: Kylian Mbappe (PSG)
Maradona Award for Best Goal Scorer of the Year: Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich)
TikTok Fans’ Player of the Year: Robert Lewandowski
Top Goal Scorer of All Time: Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United)
Best Women's Player of the Year: Alexia Putellas (Barcelona)
Best Men's Club of the Year: Chelsea
Best Women's Club of the Year: Barcelona
Best Defender of the Year: Leonardo Bonucci (Juventus/Italy)
Best Goalkeeper of the Year: Gianluigi Donnarumma (PSG/Italy)
Best Coach of the Year: Roberto Mancini (Italy)
Best National Team of the Year: Italy
Best Agent of the Year: Federico Pastorello
Best Sporting Director of the Year: Txiki Begiristain (Manchester City)
Player Career Award: Ronaldinho
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The rules on fostering in the UAE
A foster couple or family must:
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- A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially
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Business Insights
- Canada and Mexico are significant energy suppliers to the US, providing the majority of oil and natural gas imports
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The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
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9.30pm: Forever Young
THE SPECS
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Transmission: 6-speed automatic
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Profile Box
Company/date started: 2015
Founder/CEO: Mohammed Toraif
Based: Manama, Bahrain
Sector: Sales, Technology, Conservation
Size: (employees/revenue) 4/ 5,000 downloads
Stage: 1 ($100,000)
Investors: Two first-round investors including, 500 Startups, Fawaz Al Gosaibi Holding (Saudi Arabia)
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre flat-six
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Transmission: 7-speed PDK auto or 6-speed manual
Fuel economy, combined: 13.8L/100km
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AT4 Ultimate, as tested
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2025 Fifa Club World Cup groups
Group A: Palmeiras, Porto, Al Ahly, Inter Miami.
Group B: Paris Saint-Germain, Atletico Madrid, Botafogo, Seattle.
Group C: Bayern Munich, Auckland City, Boca Juniors, Benfica.
Group D: Flamengo, ES Tunis, Chelsea, (Leon banned).
Group E: River Plate, Urawa, Monterrey, Inter Milan.
Group F: Fluminense, Borussia Dortmund, Ulsan, Mamelodi Sundowns.
Group G: Manchester City, Wydad, Al Ain, Juventus.
Group H: Real Madrid, Al Hilal, Pachuca, Salzburg.
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WHAT IS A BLACK HOLE?
1. Black holes are objects whose gravity is so strong not even light can escape their pull
2. They can be created when massive stars collapse under their own weight
3. Large black holes can also be formed when smaller ones collide and merge
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
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
The bio
Date of Birth: April 25, 1993
Place of Birth: Dubai, UAE
Marital Status: Single
School: Al Sufouh in Jumeirah, Dubai
University: Emirates Airline National Cadet Programme and Hamdan University
Job Title: Pilot, First Officer
Number of hours flying in a Boeing 777: 1,200
Number of flights: Approximately 300
Hobbies: Exercising
Nicest destination: Milan, New Zealand, Seattle for shopping
Least nice destination: Kabul, but someone has to do it. It’s not scary but at least you can tick the box that you’ve been
Favourite place to visit: Dubai, there’s no place like home
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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
The specS: 2018 Toyota Camry
Price: base / as tested: Dh91,000 / Dh114,000
Engine: 3.5-litre V6
Gearbox: Eight-speed automatic
Power: 298hp @ 6,600rpm
Torque: 356Nm @ 4,700rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 7.0L / 100km
Company%C2%A0profile
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%20name%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3Eamana%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E2010%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounders%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Karim%20Farra%20and%20Ziad%20Aboujeb%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EUAE%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ERegulator%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EDFSA%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EFinancial%20services%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ECurrent%20number%20of%20staff%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E85%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%20stage%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESelf-funded%3Cbr%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Panipat
Director Ashutosh Gowariker
Produced Ashutosh Gowariker, Rohit Shelatkar, Reliance Entertainment
Cast Arjun Kapoor, Sanjay Dutt, Kriti Sanon, Mohnish Behl, Padmini Kolhapure, Zeenat Aman
Rating 3 /5 stars
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
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
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Company%20profile
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Tips for job-seekers
- Do not submit your application through the Easy Apply button on LinkedIn. Employers receive between 600 and 800 replies for each job advert on the platform. If you are the right fit for a job, connect to a relevant person in the company on LinkedIn and send them a direct message.
- Make sure you are an exact fit for the job advertised. If you are an HR manager with five years’ experience in retail and the job requires a similar candidate with five years’ experience in consumer, you should apply. But if you have no experience in HR, do not apply for the job.
David Mackenzie, founder of recruitment agency Mackenzie Jones Middle East
Which honey takes your fancy?
Al Ghaf Honey
The Al Ghaf tree is a local desert tree which bears the harsh summers with drought and high temperatures. From the rich flowers, bees that pollinate this tree can produce delicious red colour honey in June and July each year
Sidr Honey
The Sidr tree is an evergreen tree with long and strong forked branches. The blossom from this tree is called Yabyab, which provides rich food for bees to produce honey in October and November. This honey is the most expensive, but tastiest
Samar Honey
The Samar tree trunk, leaves and blossom contains Barm which is the secret of healing. You can enjoy the best types of honey from this tree every year in May and June. It is an historical witness to the life of the Emirati nation which represents the harsh desert and mountain environments
Company%20profile
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Election pledges on migration
CDU: "Now is the time to control the German borders and enforce strict border rejections"
SPD: "Border closures and blanket rejections at internal borders contradict the spirit of a common area of freedom"
