We must break the stigma surrounding mental health. Getty
We must break the stigma surrounding mental health. Getty

We must fight the stigma surrounding mental health



I write to you in reference to The National's editorial It is vital that we break the stigma of mental health (May 11).

I was pleased to read this piece because it underlines the negative impacts of a taboo that is rarely ever talked about.

I believe that it is vital we teach our children that mental health issues are not a sign of weakness. We must also stop perpetuating this baseless idea in our daily interactions with others.

Clearly, stigmatising those with mental health problems is not going to help them overcome their ailment. This preconceived notion has done enough harm as it is.

Harold A Maio, Florida

An inspiring win and wonderful final match in IPL

I write to you in reference to Paul Radley's article IPL 2019: Mumbai Indians win thrilling but ill-tempered final against Chennai Super Kings (May 13).

Although both teams had a good performance, the Mumbai Indians clearly had some extra mileage to win the Hyderabad match. Despite Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Shane Watson’s good partnership the Chennai Super Kings unfortunately lost the match. Nonetheless, the crowd was treated to a wonderful final match. The team spirit and overall confidence of the Mumbai Indians is an inspiration to cricket fans everywhere.

K Ragavan, Bengaluru

It is too early for assumptions about the Fujairah sabotage

I write to you in reference to your report Two Saudi tankers off Fujairah coast targets of 'sabotage attack' (May 13).

The “sabotage” in Fujairah is quite worrying, and world leaders are right to condemn these actions.

However, the perpetrators of the attack have not been identified yet and an investigation is still ongoing.

Until we have hard evidence, beyond reasonable doubt, we should not speculate about this incident or let inflammatory comments pervade the discussion about the Fujairah attack.

Randall Mohammed, Dubai

Emergency inflight training for passengers can save lives

I write to you in reference to your online video captioned A Myanmar pilot safely landed a passenger jet without its front wheels (May 12).

Thank God everyone on that plane is now safe and no one lost their lives during the landing in Myanmar.

I was looking at video footage that was taken from inside the plane, which showed passengers afraid for their lives and confused. This was truly heartbreaking and must be avoided at all costs.

In the future, I believe that passengers should have to pay special attention to inflight emergency exit training so that they can learn how to deal with such situations properly.

This will also teach us how to manage our panic, if such an event should ever occur, and most importantly save many lives.

Nadeem Ali, Pakistan

Disclaimer

Director: Alfonso Cuaron 

Stars: Cate Blanchett, Kevin Kline, Lesley Manville 

Rating: 4/5

SPECS

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Power: 630hp
Torque: 850Nm
Transmission: 8-speed Tiptronic automatic
Price: From Dh599,000
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The specs
Engine: Long-range single or dual motor with 200kW or 400kW battery
Power: 268bhp / 536bhp
Torque: 343Nm / 686Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Max touring range: 620km / 590km
Price: From Dh250,000 (estimated)
On sale: Later this year
RESULTS

5pm: Wathba Stallions Cup – Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 (Turf) 2,200m
Winner: M'A Yaromoon, Jesus Rosales (jockey), Khalifa Al Neydai (trainer)

5.30pm: Khor Al Baghal – Conditions (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 1,600m
Winner: No Riesgo Al Maury, Antonio Fresu, Ibrahim Al Hadhrami

6pm: Khor Faridah – Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 1,600m
Winner: JAP Almahfuz, Royston Ffrench, Irfan Ellahi

6.30pm: Abu Dhabi Fillies Classic – Prestige (PA) Dh110,000 (T) 1,400m
Winner: Mahmouda, Pat Cosgrave, Abdallah Al Hammadi

7pm: Abu Dhabi Colts Classic – Prestige (PA) Dh110,000 (T) 1,400m
Winner: AS Jezan, George Buckell, Ahmed Al Mehairbi

7.30pm: Khor Laffam – Handicap (TB) Dh80,000 (T) 2,200m
Winner: Dolman, Antonio Fresu, Bhupath Seemar

Electoral College Victory

Trump has so far secured 295 Electoral College votes, according to the Associated Press, exceeding the 270 needed to win. Only Nevada and Arizona remain to be called, and both swing states are leaning Republican. Trump swept all five remaining swing states, North Carolina, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin, sealing his path to victory and giving him a strong mandate. 

 

Popular Vote Tally

The count is ongoing, but Trump currently leads with nearly 51 per cent of the popular vote to Harris’s 47.6 per cent. Trump has over 72.2 million votes, while Harris trails with approximately 67.4 million.

Indoor cricket in a nutshell

Indoor cricket in a nutshell
Indoor Cricket World Cup - Sept 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

Profile box

Company name: baraka
Started: July 2020
Founders: Feras Jalbout and Kunal Taneja
Based: Dubai and Bahrain
Sector: FinTech
Initial investment: $150,000
Current staff: 12
Stage: Pre-seed capital raising of $1 million
Investors: Class 5 Global, FJ Labs, IMO Ventures, The Community Fund, VentureSouq, Fox Ventures, Dr Abdulla Elyas (private investment)

Citadel: Honey Bunny first episode

Directors: Raj & DK

Stars: Varun Dhawan, Samantha Ruth Prabhu, Kashvi Majmundar, Kay Kay Menon

Rating: 4/5

Singham Again

Director: Rohit Shetty

Stars: Ajay Devgn, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Ranveer Singh, Akshay Kumar, Tiger Shroff, Deepika Padukone

Rating: 3/5

COMPANY PROFILE
Name: ARDH Collective
Based: Dubai
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Sector: Sustainability
Total funding: Self funded
Number of employees: 4
Day 1, Abu Dhabi Test: At a glance

Moment of the day Dimuth Karunaratne had batted with plenty of pluck, and no little skill, in getting to within seven runs of a first-day century. Then, while he ran what he thought was a comfortable single to mid-on, his batting partner Dinesh Chandimal opted to stay at home. The opener was run out by the length of the pitch.

Stat of the day – 1 One six was hit on Day 1. The boundary was only breached 18 times in total over the course of the 90 overs. When it did arrive, the lone six was a thing of beauty, as Niroshan Dickwella effortlessly clipped Mohammed Amir over the square-leg boundary.

The verdict Three wickets down at lunch, on a featherbed wicket having won the toss, and Sri Lanka’s fragile confidence must have been waning. Then Karunaratne and Chandimal's alliance of precisely 100 gave them a foothold in the match. Dickwella’s free-spirited strokeplay meant the Sri Lankans were handily placed at 227-4 at the close.

The specs
Engine: 77.4kW all-wheel-drive dual motor
Power: 320bhp
Torque: 605Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh219,000
On sale: Now
Gulf Under 19s final

Dubai College A 50-12 Dubai College B