Rohan Mustafa says he hopes for the best for the UAE team and “will pray for them to win” despite his shock omission from the T20 World Cup squad.
The 33-year-old all-rounder received the news via text message on Friday night.
Mustafa is the most capped UAE player in both T20I and One-Day International cricket.
He had hit the winning run when the national team won the qualifying tournament for the T20 World Cup, in Muscat in February.
In the immediate aftermath of that win over Ireland, Mustafa said he was looking forward to making history by becoming the first UAE player to appear in three World Cups.
He played the first time the national team featured in what was then known as the World T20, in Bangladesh in 2014. He also played at the 50-over version in Australia and New Zealand a year later.
However, his dream of a return trip to Australia will not be realised after he was left out of the 15-man squad for the tournament.
Mustafa said he was hurt by being dropped, but wishes his erstwhile teammates success.
“Of course it is going to be sad for me to watch,” Mustafa said.
“It was the dream for me, as it would have meant me becoming the first UAE player to play at three World Cups.
“It will be a sad moment for me, and I feel like they are going to miss me a bit. I felt like I had been doing well in T20Is, and was No 8 [in the ICC all-rounder rankings] before I stopped looking at these things.
“I will miss them, and do believe they will miss me too, but I will definitely sit down and watch their matches and pray for them to win.
“I have played cricket with them for a long, long time and they are all my friends and colleagues. I wish that they will win and qualify for the next round.”
The national team will play matches against Asia Cup champions Sri Lanka, Namibia and the Netherlands in Geelong next month.
The top two sides in that group will advance to play in the main competition at venues across Australia.
Since sealing qualification in fine style earlier this year, the national team have had a fraught time on the field.
Indifferent results in the 50-over Cricket World Cup League 2 led to Ahmed Raza’s removal as captain on the eve of the Asia Cup qualifying tournament last month.
Raza has retained his place in the squad for the World Cup, despite both him and Mustafa being dropped from the starting XI at the Asia Cup Qualifier in Oman.
The experienced duo, who were former schoolmates in Sharjah, were omitted in response to the national team’s opening game loss to Kuwait.
Mustafa was so stunned by his removal from the line up that he was in tears in the dressing room for the majority of the next match, and inconsolable.
“I did not even cry as much for my father as I did then,” said Mustafa, whose father died when Mustafa was just a teenager.
“But I believe that everything that happens happens for good. I believe something good will happen to me as well.”
Mustafa says he is not considering retirement and hopes to play again for the national team one day.
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Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
What vitamins do we know are beneficial for living in the UAE
Vitamin D: Highly relevant in the UAE due to limited sun exposure; supports bone health, immunity and mood.
Vitamin B12: Important for nerve health and energy production, especially for vegetarians, vegans and individuals with absorption issues.
Iron: Useful only when deficiency or anaemia is confirmed; helps reduce fatigue and support immunity.
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Houthis: Iran-backed rebels who occupy Sanaa and run unrecognised government
Yemeni government: Exiled government in Aden led by eight-member Presidential Leadership Council
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Cryopreservation: A timeline
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The years Ramadan fell in May
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.”
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