Having notched their first win in 10 years over Kenya earlier on the tour, the UAE are six wickets away from a stunning Intercontinental Cup win over the hosts in Nairobi.
Dismissed for 213 in the first innings and having conceded a first innings lead, the visitors made a remarkable turnaround in their second innings, declaring on a mammoth 439 for eight at tea on day three to set Kenya 434 for a win. Amjad Javed (100), Saqib Ali (153) and captain Khurram Khan (113) all scored centuries on the day.
By close of stumps on Saturday, the hosts had lost four wickets for 76 and now face the challenge of batting out three sessions today to save the game and deny UAE the 14 points for an outright win.
"It was a really good day for us - three 100s, one of which was a 150," said Mohammed Lokhandwala, the team manager. "After the first innings, we had a lot of catching up to do and we have done that. I was looking around 350, but we have done even better than that.
"We have also taken four wickets, which is a fantastic start for us. Now we just have to work on another six wickets tomorrow. We have got most of their main batsmen out; only their captain Collins Obuya remains.
"We will try to finish it off as early as we can. Unfortunately we missed out on the six points for the first innings lead, but at least we will get 14 points [for outright win]."
The change in UAE's fortunes came when Kabir Khan, the coach, decided to promote Javed after they had lost three wickets for 31 in the second innings. The lanky medium pacer gave Saqib company for the next 47.5 overs, contributing 190 runs to the UAE score.
Khurram and Saqib then added 141 for the fifth wicket, taking the score to 362. The UAE captain and his deputy Mohammed Tauqir (38 not out) then added to the hosts' woes with a 67-run partnership for the eighth wicket.
"The team needed this batting performance from us," said Saqib. "We had to make up for the first innings, when we got out cheaply. So we were determined to stay at the crease; if you stay at the crease long enough and allow yourself to get in, the runs start flowing automatically.
"That was our main focus when Javed joined me at the crease [on day two]. We just decided to make sure we did not lose any further wickets. Thankfully, we were able to carry out our plans successfully.
"We wanted to get as many runs on the board as possible so that our bowlers could have a go at them, attack them without having to worry about defending."
Saqib topped the tournament run-scoring charts in UAE's last appearance in the Intercontinental Cup, in 2007-08, and is looking forward to another successful run after his century in the opening match of their campaign.
"I have made a good start," said Saqib, who scored 690 runs from seven matches last time. "God willing, I hope to keep this form going and help the team get good results."
arizvi@thenational.ae
Volvo ES90 Specs
Engine: Electric single motor (96kW), twin motor (106kW) and twin motor performance (106kW)
Power: 333hp, 449hp, 680hp
Torque: 480Nm, 670Nm, 870Nm
On sale: Later in 2025 or early 2026, depending on region
Price: Exact regional pricing TBA
Skewed figures
In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458.
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Director: Shankar
Stars: Ram Charan, Kiara Advani, Anjali, S J Suryah, Jayaram
Rating: 2/5
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Director: Raed Zeno
Rating: 4/5
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Other workplace saving schemes
- The UAE government announced a retirement savings plan for private and free zone sector employees in 2023.
- Dubai’s savings retirement scheme for foreign employees working in the emirate’s government and public sector came into effect in 2022.
- National Bonds unveiled a Golden Pension Scheme in 2022 to help private-sector foreign employees with their financial planning.
- In April 2021, Hayah Insurance unveiled a workplace savings plan to help UAE employees save for their retirement.
- Lunate, an Abu Dhabi-based investment manager, has launched a fund that will allow UAE private companies to offer employees investment returns on end-of-service benefits.
The Bio
Ram Buxani earned a salary of 125 rupees per month in 1959
Indian currency was then legal tender in the Trucial States.
He received the wages plus food, accommodation, a haircut and cinema ticket twice a month and actuals for shaving and laundry expenses
Buxani followed in his father’s footsteps when he applied for a job overseas
His father Jivat Ram worked in general merchandize store in Gibraltar and the Canary Islands in the early 1930s
Buxani grew the UAE business over several sectors from retail to financial services but is attached to the original textile business
He talks in detail about natural fibres, the texture of cloth, mirrorwork and embroidery
Buxani lives by a simple philosophy – do good to all
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Editorial: The fight against Covid-19 should be guided by science
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Jack Moore: Why the assassination is such a monumental gamble
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Ticket prices
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MATCH INFO
World Cup qualifier
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UAE 1 (Mabkhout 45 2')
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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Mina Al Oraibi: Air strike casts a long shadow over the decade ahead
Matthew Levitt: Iran retains its ability to launch terror attacks
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The Great Derangement: Climate Change and the Unthinkable
Amitav Ghosh, University of Chicago Press
Fitness problems in men's tennis
Andy Murray - hip
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The biog
Hometown: Cairo
Age: 37
Favourite TV series: The Handmaid’s Tale, Black Mirror
Favourite anime series: Death Note, One Piece and Hellsing
Favourite book: Designing Brand Identity, Fifth Edition
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
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Recipes to try
The Brutalist
Director: Brady Corbet
Stars: Adrien Brody, Felicity Jones, Guy Pearce, Joe Alwyn
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- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
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Emirates exiles
Will Wilson is not the first player to have attained high-class representative honours after first learning to play rugby on the playing fields of UAE.
Jonny Macdonald
Abu Dhabi-born and raised, the current Jebel Ali Dragons assistant coach was selected to play for Scotland at the Hong Kong Sevens in 2011.
Jordan Onojaife
Having started rugby by chance when the Jumeirah College team were short of players, he later won the World Under 20 Championship with England.
Devante Onojaife
Followed older brother Jordan into England age-group rugby, as well as the pro game at Northampton Saints, but recently switched allegiance to Scotland.
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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.”