World No 1 Novak Djokovic celebrated his return to competition since becoming a father last week with a ruthless 6-3, 6-4 second round victory over Germany’s Philipp Kohlschreiber at the Paris Masters on Tuesday.
The 27-year-old defending champion showed the flashes of brilliance, that has seen him win seven grand slams, on the way to a third round meeting against either American 13th seed John Isner or French crowd-pleaser Gael Monfils.
The Serbian, whose wife Jelena gave birth to a baby boy Stefan on October 21 and is chasing a third title in Paris, secured early breaks in both sets to lay the foundations for his victory.
“It was very, very good because it’s not easy, the first match and being indoors, so I’m very happy,” said Djokovic.
“I still don’t quite feel 100 per cent physically and the court threw up a lot of high bounces but I played a quality match and was very concentrated.
“It’s incredible to be a father and I dedicate this victory to my wife Jelena and Stefan.
“I’m very proud to be a father and I’m very proud of my wife for handling the birth in a great way. She’s back home recovering now, with our little boy.
“This was my first match as a father and it can only inspire me to play my best tennis,” he added.
Tomas Berdych, who won his one and only Masters title at Bercy in 2005, had too much guile and experience for French wildcard Adrian Mannarino as he advanced in the last match of the day 6-4, 6-7 (3/7), 6-2.
The Czech fifth seed, who is well on course for the season ending ATP World Tour Finals in London and a top-10 finish for the fifth year in a row, will meet American qualifier Sam Querrey or Spaniard Feliciano Lopez in the last-32.
Earlier, Spanish veteran Tommy Robredo survived a scare before prevailing 6-3, 4-6, 7-6 (7/5) over Canada’s Vasek Pospisil in a first round match.
Former world No 5 Robredo was evidently still feeling the effects of reaching the final of the Valencia Open on Sunday where he was beaten by Andy Murray in the longest final of the year.
Robredo, 32 and who has reached three finals this season but lost them all, plays Japanese sixth seed Kei Nishikori in the second round.
French hopes were badly dented when Shanghai Masters finalist and 15th seed Gilles Simon, crashed out in the second round against Spaniard Fernando Verdasco.
The world No 33 broke in the final game to outlast Simon 6-3, 3-6, 6-4 in 1hr 53min.
“It’s always the same, I didn’t control anything,” said a dejected Simon, who was making his ninth straight appearance at Bercy.
“It’s a pity, because physically I felt I was fit, I had energy and I could have played a lot.
“I’m extremely disappointed because I like this tournament and I felt I could do well here.” added Simon.
The match came down to a nail-biting deciding set that went with serve until Verdasco went 5-4 up and Simon was serving to stay in the match.
The right-hander from Nice faced match point at 30-40 and after a marathon rally hit long as Verdasco claimed a morale-boosting victory and pounded his chest in celebration.
Verdasco will play either former champion and last year’s finalist David Ferrer or Belgian talent David Goffin.
The 23-year-old Goffin, who lost the Basel Open final in straight sets against Roger Federer on Sunday but has two ATP wins this season, overpowered Czech Republic world No 29 Lukas Rosol 6-4, 6-3.
Federer gets his campaign underway on Wednesday against Frenchman Jeremy Chardy.
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From Europe to the Middle East, economic success brings wealth - and lifestyle diseases
A rise in obesity figures and the need for more public spending is a familiar trend in the developing world as western lifestyles are adopted.
One in five deaths around the world is now caused by bad diet, with obesity the fastest growing global risk. A high body mass index is also the top cause of metabolic diseases relating to death and disability in Kuwait, Qatar and Oman – and second on the list in Bahrain.
In Britain, heart disease, lung cancer and Alzheimer’s remain among the leading causes of death, and people there are spending more time suffering from health problems.
The UK is expected to spend $421.4 billion on healthcare by 2040, up from $239.3 billion in 2014.
And development assistance for health is talking about the financial aid given to governments to support social, environmental development of developing countries.
Ms Yang's top tips for parents new to the UAE
- Join parent networks
- Look beyond school fees
- Keep an open mind
The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
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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
Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
Power: 620hp from 5,750-7,500rpm
Torque: 760Nm from 3,000-5,750rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed dual-clutch auto
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh1.05 million ($286,000)
Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
Wicked
Director: Jon M Chu
Stars: Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Jonathan Bailey
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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if you go
The flights
Air France offer flights from Dubai and Abu Dhabi to Cayenne, connecting in Paris from Dh7,300.
The tour
Cox & Kings (coxandkings.com) has a 14-night Hidden Guianas tour of Guyana, Suriname and French Guiana. It includes accommodation, domestic flights, transfers, a local tour manager and guided sightseeing. Contact for price.
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-final, first leg
Bayern Munich v Real Madrid
When: April 25, 10.45pm kick-off (UAE)
Where: Allianz Arena, Munich
Live: BeIN Sports HD
Second leg: May 1, Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid
