DUBAI // Jim Courier and Stefan Edberg, two of tennis' elder statesmen who put on an entertaining show for an appreciative Dubai audience on Saturday evening, were united in their enthusiasm in welcoming Abu Dhabi as a new venue for their sport when the capital stages a high-quality exhibition tournament in January.
Courier, the American who rose to the top of the world rankings in the process of winning two Australian Opens and two French Opens, envied the current crop of leading players who will test their skills in the UAE from Jan 1-3.
"An exhibition, as attractive as that one is, provides a great way for the top players to get some intense top flight matches before they get going in the new season," said Courier, an impressive winner of the Legends Rock Dubai tournament after his 6-3, 6-4 conquest of Edberg.
"There is nothing better in my opinion for a player at the beginning of the year than to get in some matches where you are playing against some great competition when the stress levels are not that high. It should be perfect for the players' schedule and it will be ideal preparation for the Australian Open."
Courier, still an impressive baseline mover at 38, based those comments on two visits to Dubai in 1996 and 1997 for the popular ATP Tour event at the Aviation Club and two return visit as a "veteran" on the Legends circuit.
"I have always had a great time in Dubai. And I am sure Abu Dhabi will be just as enjoyable for those who play there."
Those players are scheduled to be Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray, Nikolay Davydenko, who ended 2008 as the world's top five, and James Blake, the flamboyant American who is ranked 10th.
Edberg, 42, who also rose to world No 1 status during a splendid career which brought six grand slam titles, also welcomed the advent of Abu Dhabi on to the tennis calendar.
"Tennis is a worldwide sport. We have got it going in Russia, China and Latin America.
"Abu Dhabi is a different venue for our leading players and that can only be good for the game.
"Probably a lot of people will watch this tournament and they will all learn where Abu Dhabi is and what role it is capable of playing in the future of tennis."
Edberg, who played in the Dubai Championships once and in neighbouring Doha on four occasions, was delighted with his efforts over the week as he fell fractionally short of the top prize of $54,000 (Dh198,000).
The Swede stepped in at the last minute to replace the injured Goran Ivanisevic and was rewarded with an invitation to return next year for the fifth running of the Legends Rock, which is sponsored by The National.
"They made the offer on court so I assume I am safe in accepting it," he said.
"I am looking forward to coming back next year."
@Email:wjohnson@thenational.ae
The National Archives, Abu Dhabi
Founded over 50 years ago, the National Archives collects valuable historical material relating to the UAE, and is the oldest and richest archive relating to the Arabian Gulf.
Much of the material can be viewed on line at the Arabian Gulf Digital Archive - https://www.agda.ae/en
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Transmission: CVT auto
Power: 181bhp
Torque: 244Nm
Price: Dh122,900
Cricket World Cup League 2
UAE squad
Rahul Chopra (captain), Aayan Afzal Khan, Ali Naseer, Aryansh Sharma, Basil Hameed, Dhruv Parashar, Junaid Siddique, Muhammad Farooq, Muhammad Jawadullah, Muhammad Waseem, Omid Rahman, Rahul Bhatia, Tanish Suri, Vishnu Sukumaran, Vriitya Aravind
Fixtures
Friday, November 1 – Oman v UAE
Sunday, November 3 – UAE v Netherlands
Thursday, November 7 – UAE v Oman
Saturday, November 9 – Netherlands v UAE
The specs
Engine: 2-litre or 3-litre 4Motion all-wheel-drive Power: 250Nm (2-litre); 340 (3-litre) Torque: 450Nm Transmission: 8-speed automatic Starting price: From Dh212,000 On sale: Now
Jigra
Starring: Alia Bhatt, Vedang Raina, Manoj Pahwa, Harsh Singh
THE SPECS
Engine: Four-cylinder 2.5-litre
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Power: 165hp
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SPEC%20SHEET
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Director: Todd Phillips
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Bookshops: A Reader's History by Jorge Carrión (translated from the Spanish by Peter Bush),
Biblioasis
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Director: Raed Zeno
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UAE central contracts
Full time contracts
Rohan Mustafa, Ahmed Raza, Mohammed Usman, Chirag Suri, Mohammed Boota, Sultan Ahmed, Zahoor Khan, Junaid Siddique, Waheed Ahmed, Zawar Farid
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2007 – lost 3-0 to Brazil in the final
2011 – lost to Uruguay on penalties in the quarter-finals
2015 – lost to Chile on penalties in the final
2016 – lost to Chile on penalties in the final
Ronaldo's record at Man Utd
Seasons 2003/04 - 2008/09
Appearances 230
Goals 115
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Director: Wes Anderson
Starring: Bryan Cranston, Liev Schreiber, Ed Norton, Greta Gerwig, Bill Murray, Jeff Goldblum, Scarlett Johansson
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Cast: Olivia Cooke, Bill Nighy, Douglas Booth
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Director: Hansal Mehta
Rating: 4 / 5
The specs
Engine: 77.4kW all-wheel-drive dual motor
Power: 320bhp
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The biog
Marital status: Separated with two young daughters
Education: Master's degree from American Univeristy of Cairo
Favourite book: That Is How They Defeat Despair by Salwa Aladian
Favourite Motto: Their happiness is your happiness
Goal: For Nefsy to become his legacy long after he is gon
COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Total funding: Self funded
Company%20Profile
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%20name%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Hoopla%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EDate%20started%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EMarch%202023%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounder%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Jacqueline%20Perrottet%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Dubai%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ENumber%20of%20staff%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2010%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%20stage%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EPre-seed%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%20required%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20%24500%2C000%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
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Manchester City 1
Jesus 4'
Brighton 0
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1: Commit to countering all types of terrorism and extremism in all their manifestations
2: Denounce violence and the rhetoric of hatred
3: Adhere to the full compliance with the Riyadh accord of 2014 and the subsequent meeting and executive procedures approved in 2014 by the GCC
4: Comply with all recommendations of the Summit between the US and Muslim countries held in May 2017 in Saudi Arabia.
5: Refrain from interfering in the internal affairs of countries and of supporting rogue entities.
6: Carry out the responsibility of all the countries with the international community to counter all manifestations of extremism and terrorism that threaten international peace and security
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Label: Parlophone/Atlantic
Number of tracks: 10
Rating: 3/5