Feliciano Lopez, the winner of the Queen's Club Championship on Sunday, believes he has the potential to challenge at Wimbledon, which starts next Monday. But it is not often that the winner at Queen's goes on to win the grand slam title. Here is a look at the last five men to complete the double on grass.
Andy Murray
The world No 1 has prevailed twice at Wimbledon and on both occasions, last year and in 2013 he went into the third grand slam of the season with the confidence of a Queen's title behind him. In 2016 he came from behind to beat Canadian Milos Raonic in the final, and that would prove fitting as it would be Raonic he would beat in the Wimbledon final three weeks later. In 2013, it was Marin Cilic he would beat at Queen's, and he went on to beat Novak Djokovic in the final at Wimbledon. However, winning Queen's is no guarantee of success, as Murray also won it in 2009, 2011 and 2015 and did not prevail in any of those years.
Rafael Nadal
The Spaniard had been knocking on the door of Wimbledon success as he had been beaten finalist in both the 2006 and 2007 finals at Wimbledon. But a successful week at Queen's in 2008 where he got past grass-court specialists such as Ivo Karlovic and Andy Roddick, before beating Djokovic in the final in straight sets, set him up to be third time lucky at Wimbledon as he finally got the better of Roger Federer in the final, winning a classic final 6-4, 6-4, 6-7, 6-7, 9-7 to claim the first of the two titles he has won at SW19, the second coming in 2010.
Lleyton Hewitt
The Australian was the dominant player in the game in the summer of 2002 in the spell that ran between the decline of Pete Sampras and the rise of Federer. Hewitt had already proven to be a force at Queen's, having won the 2000 and 2001 competitions, and he completed his hat-trick in 2002 as having got to the final without dropping a set, he recovered from losing the first set to Tim Henman to triumph 4-6, 6-1, 6-4. Hewitt then took that form to Wimbledon where he would win would prove to be his second, and last, major, losing only two sets all tournament as he defeated David Nalbandian in the final.
Pete Sampras
The American's record on grass really needs no introduction as his seven Wimbledon titles in eight years between 1993 and 2000 made him the most successful player in the history of the open era of tennis until Federer equalled that tally in 2012, though the Swiss's haul took 10 years to assemble. While not always a frequent competitor at Queen's, he triumphed twice there in 1995, defeating Guy Forget 7-6, 7-6, and then in 1999 when he got the better of Henman 6-7, 6-4, 6-4, and both times he went on to be the victor at Wimbledon.
Boris Becker
The German will be a feature at Wimbledon this year as a media pundit, but 32 years ago he produced one of the biggest shocks in the history of the sport when as an unheralded 17 year old he became, at the time, the youngest ever grand slam winner at the age of 17 years and 227 days. But, those paying attention would not have been surprised by the development as the previous month in June 1985 he was the winner at Queen's. Seeded 11th he defeated American Johan Kriek 6-2, 6-3 in the final to underline his potential on grass.
England squads for Test and T20 series against New Zealand
Test squad: Joe Root (capt), Jofra Archer, Stuart Broad, Rory Burns, Jos Buttler, Zak Crawley, Sam Curran, Joe Denly, Jack Leach, Saqib Mahmood, Matthew Parkinson, Ollie Pope, Dominic Sibley, Ben Stokes, Chris Woakes
T20 squad: Eoin Morgan (capt), Jonny Bairstow, Tom Banton, Sam Billings, Pat Brown, Sam Curran, Tom Curran, Joe Denly, Lewis Gregory, Chris Jordan, Saqib Mahmood, Dawid Malan, Matt Parkinson, Adil Rashid, James Vince
The Two Popes
Director: Fernando Meirelles
Stars: Anthony Hopkins, Jonathan Pryce
Four out of five stars
Stamp duty timeline
December 2014: Former UK finance minister George Osbourne reforms stamp duty, replacing the slab system with a blended rate scheme, with the top rate increasing to 12 per cent from 10 per cent:
Up to £125,000 - 0%; £125,000 to £250,000 – 2%; £250,000 to £925,000 – 5%; £925,000 to £1.5m: 10%; Over £1.5m – 12%
April 2016: New 3% surcharge applied to any buy-to-let properties or additional homes purchased.
July 2020: Rishi Sunak unveils SDLT holiday, with no tax to pay on the first £500,000, with buyers saving up to £15,000.
March 2021: Mr Sunak decides the fate of SDLT holiday at his March 3 budget, with expectations he will extend the perk unti June.
April 2021: 2% SDLT surcharge added to property transactions made by overseas buyers.
Frankenstein in Baghdad
Ahmed Saadawi
Penguin Press
Credits
Produced by: Colour Yellow Productions and Eros Now
Director: Mudassar Aziz
Cast: Sonakshi Sinha, Jimmy Sheirgill, Jassi Gill, Piyush Mishra, Diana Penty, Aparshakti Khurrana
Star rating: 2.5/5
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Lamsa
Founder: Badr Ward
Launched: 2014
Employees: 60
Based: Abu Dhabi
Sector: EdTech
Funding to date: $15 million
World Cup final
Who: France v Croatia
When: Sunday, July 15, 7pm (UAE)
TV: Game will be shown live on BeIN Sports for viewers in the Mena region
The specs: 2019 Subaru Forester
Price, base: Dh105,900 (Premium); Dh115,900 (Sport)
Engine: 2.5-litre four-cylinder
Transmission: Continuously variable transmission
Power: 182hp @ 5,800rpm
Torque: 239Nm @ 4,400rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 8.1L / 100km (estimated)
MATCH INFO
Qalandars 112-4 (10 ovs)
Banton 53 no
Northern Warriors 46 all out (9 ovs)
Kumara 3-10, Garton 3-10, Jordan 2-2, Prasanna 2-7
Qalandars win by six wickets
ARM%20IPO%20DETAILS
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EShare%20price%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Undisclosed%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ETarget%20raise%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20%248%20billion%20to%20%2410%20billion%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EProjected%20valuation%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20%2460%20billion%20to%20%2470%20billion%20(Source%3A%20Bloomberg)%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ELead%20underwriters%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Barclays%2C%20Goldman%20Sachs%20Group%2C%20JPMorgan%20Chase%20and%20Mizuho%20Financial%20Group%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Thanksgiving meals to try
World Cut Steakhouse, Habtoor Palace Hotel, Dubai. On Thursday evening, head chef Diego Solis will be serving a high-end sounding four-course meal that features chestnut veloute with smoked duck breast, turkey roulade accompanied by winter vegetables and foie gras and pecan pie, cranberry compote and popcorn ice cream.
Jones the Grocer, various locations across the UAE. Jones’s take-home holiday menu delivers on the favourites: whole roast turkeys, an array of accompaniments (duck fat roast potatoes, sausages wrapped in beef bacon, honey-glazed parsnips and carrots) and more, as well as festive food platters, canapes and both apple and pumpkin pies.
Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse, The Address Hotel, Dubai. This New Orleans-style restaurant is keen to take the stress out of entertaining, so until December 25 you can order a full seasonal meal from its Takeaway Turkey Feast menu, which features turkey, homemade gravy and a selection of sides – think green beans with almond flakes, roasted Brussels sprouts, sweet potato casserole and bread stuffing – to pick up and eat at home.
The Mattar Farm Kitchen, Dubai. From now until Christmas, Hattem Mattar and his team will be producing game- changing smoked turkeys that you can enjoy at home over the festive period.
Nolu’s, The Galleria Mall, Maryah Island Abu Dhabi. With much of the menu focused on a California inspired “farm to table” approach (with Afghani influence), it only seems right that Nolu’s will be serving their take on the Thanksgiving spread, with a brunch at the Downtown location from 12pm to 4pm on Friday.
THE TWIN BIO
Their favourite city: Dubai
Their favourite food: Khaleeji
Their favourite past-time : walking on the beach
Their favorite quote: ‘we rise by lifting others’ by Robert Ingersoll
Cultural fiesta
What: The Al Burda Festival
When: November 14 (from 10am)
Where: Warehouse421, Abu Dhabi
The Al Burda Festival is a celebration of Islamic art and culture, featuring talks, performances and exhibitions. Organised by the Ministry of Culture and Knowledge Development, this one-day event opens with a session on the future of Islamic art. With this in mind, it is followed by a number of workshops and “masterclass” sessions in everything from calligraphy and typography to geometry and the origins of Islamic design. There will also be discussions on subjects including ‘Who is the Audience for Islamic Art?’ and ‘New Markets for Islamic Design.’ A live performance from Kuwaiti guitarist Yousif Yaseen should be one of the highlights of the day.
Results
1. New Zealand Daniel Meech – Fine (name of horse), Richard Gardner – Calisto, Bruce Goodin - Backatorps Danny V, Samantha McIntosh – Check In. Team total First round: 200.22; Second round: 201.75 – Penalties 12 (jump-off 40.16 seconds) Prize €64,000
2. Ireland Cameron Hanley – Aiyetoro, David Simpson – Keoki, Paul Kennedy – Cartown Danger Mouse, Shane Breen – Laith. Team total 200.25/202.84 – P 12 (jump-off 51.79 – P17) Prize €40,000
3. Italy Luca Maria Moneta – Connery, Luca Coata – Crandessa, Simone Coata – Dardonge, Natale Chiaudani – Almero. Team total 130.82/198.-4 – P20. Prize €32,000
Abaya trends
The utilitarian robe held dear by Arab women is undergoing a change that reveals it as an elegant and graceful garment available in a range of colours and fabrics, while retaining its traditional appeal.
