Tennis players don't typically have much time on their hands to pursue other experiences. The season is long, the travel is wide and the space between campaigns – around one month – does not lend itself to much more than a couple of weeks holiday to recharge, before pre-season gets underway.
This past break was vastly different. After the rescheduled French Open concluded on October 5, the WTA Tour put on just two more tournaments, in the Czech city of Ostrava and Linz in Austria, after the Asian Autumn swing was cancelled into response to the coronavirus pandemic.
Garbine Muguruza played in neither tournament, so her campaign came to an end after her third-round exit at Roland Garros. With the additional time on her calendar, the Spanish two-time Grand Slam champion took the opportunity to do something a little bit different: she joined the Civil Guard.
During her "experimental" week, Muguruza took part in helicopter rescue missions, went cave diving, hiked with the mountain brigade, and participated in self-defence classes, sharing much of the experience with her 800,000 Instagram followers.
"I’ve always wanted to do military training, ever since I was a kid, but the timing was never right with playing tennis," Muguruza said. "It was an incredible week. We went to Mallorca to train there and more than the activities we did, which were incredible, just sharing with them the kind of job that they do – they don’t get any awards or trophies – it was such an experience. I loved it."
But there was one area that proved particularly sobering as Muguruza spent time with the coast guard and witnessed people making dangerous sea crossings.
"It was quite hard because you see many people in need," she said. "I experienced many aspects of [the Civil Guard's] job and I found this one pretty tough. I love all the adventure stuff but there is an ugly truth that they have to face and it really opened my eyes."
After her time with the Civil Guard, Muguruza started a "longer than usual" pre-season to prepare for the 2021 campaign – her 10th on the WTA Tour.
Her season begins in both new and unique surroundings. The pandemic still looms large and has forced the WTA into creating a special calendar to get the year started in a safe and efficient way.
Kicking off this special calendar is the inaugural Abu Dhabi WTA Women’s Tennis Open. Starting on Wednesday and taking place at Zayed Sports City International Tennis Centre, the Abu Dhabi tournament will feature four of the world's top 10. Muguruza, ranked No 15, is seeded fifth and will face France's Kristina Mladenovic in the first round.
"I'm happy to be back at a new tournament because it’s been a long time since I’ve been at a new tournament," Muguruza said.
Beyond experiencing a new event, the 27-year-old former world No 1 is looking forward to returning to competitive action after so much time away from the court. However, Muguruza insists that the break from tennis has given her the chance to reflect.
"I couldn’t do my job – to be in competitions, to play on big courts and having butterflies in the stomach, and I learned that when you’re on the go, you don’t really think about it," she said.
"When you stop you realise that you miss it. But I also really appreciated the time at home so I learned that I didn’t miss tennis that much.
"Many people were sad that they had to be at home and couldn’t go out, but I was like ‘this is great!’ It was good I was able to do and explore different things."
After exploring "different things" with the Civil Guard, now it's back to the day job for Muguruza, starting in Abu Dhabi.
Islamophobia definition
A widely accepted definition was made by the All Party Parliamentary Group on British Muslims in 2019: “Islamophobia is rooted in racism and is a type of racism that targets expressions of Muslimness or perceived Muslimness.” It further defines it as “inciting hatred or violence against Muslims”.
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Power: 819hp
Torque: 678Nm at 7,250rpm
Price: From Dh1,700,000
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Specs
Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
Range: 400km
Power: 134bhp
Torque: 175Nm
Price: From Dh98,800
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Labour dispute
The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law
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Citadel: Honey Bunny first episode
Directors: Raj & DK
Stars: Varun Dhawan, Samantha Ruth Prabhu, Kashvi Majmundar, Kay Kay Menon
Rating: 4/5
Disclaimer
Director: Alfonso Cuaron
Stars: Cate Blanchett, Kevin Kline, Lesley Manville
Rating: 4/5
Six tips to secure your smart home
Most smart home devices are controlled via the owner's smartphone. Therefore, if you are using public wi-fi on your phone, always use a VPN (virtual private network) that offers strong security features and anonymises your internet connection.
Keep your smart home devices’ software up-to-date. Device makers often send regular updates - follow them without fail as they could provide protection from a new security risk.
Use two-factor authentication so that in addition to a password, your identity is authenticated by a second sign-in step like a code sent to your mobile number.
Set up a separate guest network for acquaintances and visitors to ensure the privacy of your IoT devices’ network.
Change the default privacy and security settings of your IoT devices to take extra steps to secure yourself and your home.
Always give your router a unique name, replacing the one generated by the manufacturer, to ensure a hacker cannot ascertain its make or model number.
hall of shame
SUNDERLAND 2002-03
No one has ended a Premier League season quite like Sunderland. They lost each of their final 15 games, taking no points after January. They ended up with 19 in total, sacking managers Peter Reid and Howard Wilkinson and losing 3-1 to Charlton when they scored three own goals in eight minutes.
SUNDERLAND 2005-06
Until Derby came along, Sunderland’s total of 15 points was the Premier League’s record low. They made it until May and their final home game before winning at the Stadium of Light while they lost a joint record 29 of their 38 league games.
HUDDERSFIELD 2018-19
Joined Derby as the only team to be relegated in March. No striker scored until January, while only two players got more assists than goalkeeper Jonas Lossl. The mid-season appointment Jan Siewert was to end his time as Huddersfield manager with a 5.3 per cent win rate.
ASTON VILLA 2015-16
Perhaps the most inexplicably bad season, considering they signed Idrissa Gueye and Adama Traore and still only got 17 points. Villa won their first league game, but none of the next 19. They ended an abominable campaign by taking one point from the last 39 available.
FULHAM 2018-19
Terrible in different ways. Fulham’s total of 26 points is not among the lowest ever but they contrived to get relegated after spending over £100 million (Dh457m) in the transfer market. Much of it went on defenders but they only kept two clean sheets in their first 33 games.
LA LIGA: Sporting Gijon, 13 points in 1997-98.
BUNDESLIGA: Tasmania Berlin, 10 points in 1965-66
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
'Ghostbusters: From Beyond'
Director: Jason Reitman
Starring: Paul Rudd, Carrie Coon, Finn Wolfhard, Mckenna Grace
Rating: 2/5
Who has lived at The Bishops Avenue?
- George Sainsbury of the supermarket dynasty, sugar magnate William Park Lyle and actress Dame Gracie Fields were residents in the 1930s when the street was only known as ‘Millionaires’ Row’.
- Then came the international super rich, including the last king of Greece, Constantine II, the Sultan of Brunei and Indian steel magnate Lakshmi Mittal who was at one point ranked the third richest person in the world.
- Turkish tycoon Halis Torprak sold his mansion for £50m in 2008 after spending just two days there. The House of Saud sold 10 properties on the road in 2013 for almost £80m.
- Other residents have included Iraqi businessman Nemir Kirdar, singer Ariana Grande, holiday camp impresario Sir Billy Butlin, businessman Asil Nadir, Paul McCartney’s former wife Heather Mills.
Hunting park to luxury living
- Land was originally the Bishop of London's hunting park, hence the name
- The road was laid out in the mid 19th Century, meandering through woodland and farmland
- Its earliest houses at the turn of the 20th Century were substantial detached properties with extensive grounds
Tips to avoid getting scammed
1) Beware of cheques presented late on Thursday
2) Visit an RTA centre to change registration only after receiving payment
3) Be aware of people asking to test drive the car alone
4) Try not to close the sale at night
5) Don't be rushed into a sale
6) Call 901 if you see any suspicious behaviour
Recipe: Spirulina Coconut Brothie
Ingredients
1 tbsp Spirulina powder
1 banana
1 cup unsweetened coconut milk (full fat preferable)
1 tbsp fresh turmeric or turmeric powder
½ cup fresh spinach leaves
½ cup vegan broth
2 crushed ice cubes (optional)
Method
Blend all the ingredients together on high in a high-speed blender until smooth and creamy.
RESULT
Fifth ODI, at Headingley
England 351/9
Pakistan 297
England win by 54 runs (win series 4-0)
