Anybody who witnessed the stunning launch of the Capitala World Tennis Championship last January will probably be rushing out for tickets for the second staging of the three-day, six-man spectacular which kicks off on New Year's Eve.
Even though the pre-season exhibition lacked official ATP Tour status, it proved a resounding success as six of the world's top 10 players slugged it out in a full-on battle for the solitary prize of US$250,000 (Dh917,000).
"We knew these guys were not going to be lobbing balls back to each other," said John Lickrish, managing director of Flash Entertainment who were responsible for the staging of the event at the UAE capital's Zayed Sports City complex.
"And that's what happened. It was really aggressive tennis from start to finish over all three days. The crowd loved it and so did we. I was grinning from ear to ear afterwards."
Exhibition it most certainly was not as Britain's Andy Murray rose superbly to the occasion to record an outstanding series of victories over three splendid days, culminating with an epic final conquest of the then world No 1 Rafael Nadal.
"That final was unbelievable," reflected Lickrish.
"It was a real bonus after all that had gone before and it was like the cherry on the top of our ice cream."
A capacity crowd of 5,000 were kept captivated for the best part of three hours in perfect conditions as the super-fit Murray wore down the muscle-bound Nadal in even more impressive fashion than he had accounted for Roger Federer on the previous day.
Nadal, who overcame Nikolay Davydenko in his semi-final, and Federer were seeded to play in the final then and they are scheduled to meet again in a battle for the bumper purse on the evening of January 2.
If either of those two big guns fails to make the final shoot-out, they will be consoled by the prospect of an extra match this time - a third-place play-off which is a welcome amendment to the schedule from the inaugural year.
"We've added that extra match because the players wanted it," said Greg Sproule, managing director of International Management Group (IMG) who are hosting the showpiece event.
"The players want that opportunity to have another serious practice match against one of their leading rivals because they see Abu Dhabi as an excellent place to start their preparations for the Australian Open [which starts two weeks later]."
The Capitala tournament has picked up on that by creating a playing environment identical to Melbourne Park, home of the year's first grand slam tournament.
The court surface and the tennis balls will be exactly the same as in Australia.
Sproule ventured that the Abu Dhabi event would resemble the latter stages of a grand slam. "These players need no introducing," he said as he went through the supporting cast to Federer and Nadal.
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, an artful Frenchman is a former Australian runner-up while Sweden's Robin Soderling was a shock finalist in this year's French Open in which he sensationally defeated Nadal.
Russia's Nikolay Davydenko was once ranked as high as three in the world while Spain's Fernando Verdasco is emerging as one of the most exciting players of his generation.
"It has a grand slam quarter-final feel to it," Sproule concluded.
It is also the intention to appeal to the grassroots of the sport by creating a tennis village atmosphere.
Entrance to the areas surrounding the main arena is free of charge in the hope of providing incentives to Emiratis and expats to take up the sport.
As Flash spokesman Lickrish put it: "Having the sport's top men's players on board is hugely exciting and we hope that with their support we can further encourage the local community to get involved with what truly is a fantastic sport.
"We hope not only to encourage the people of Abu Dhabi to enjoy watching the professionals play but also to spur them on to take to the court themselves." Lickrish defended his company's decision to call an unofficial exhibition event a "world championship".
He said: "For us it is the world tennis championship because we have the best players from around the world coming here. And long may that continue."
The curtain goes up on the three-day competition at 3pm on December 31 with the first of the preliminary round matches involving any combination of Tsonga, Davydenko, Verdasco and Soderling.
The two players who are not drawn together in that opening match will feature in the concluding match on the opening day with the winners going through to face Federer and Nadal on the Friday.
The final is due to take place at 5pm on the Saturday or immediately after the third-place encounter.
wjohnson@thenational.ae
Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Rain Management
Year started: 2017
Based: Bahrain
Employees: 100-120
Amount raised: $2.5m from BitMex Ventures and Blockwater. Another $6m raised from MEVP, Coinbase, Vision Ventures, CMT, Jimco and DIFC Fintech Fund
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League quarter-final, second leg (first-leg score)
Porto (0) v Liverpool (2), Wednesday, 11pm UAE
Match is on BeIN Sports
The specs: 2017 Ford F-150 Raptor
Price, base / as tested Dh220,000 / Dh320,000
Engine 3.5L V6
Transmission 10-speed automatic
Power 421hp @ 6,000rpm
Torque 678Nm @ 3,750rpm
Fuel economy, combined 14.1L / 100km
if you go
The flights
Air Astana flies direct from Dubai to Almaty from Dh2,440 per person return, and to Astana (via Almaty) from Dh2,930 return, both including taxes.
The hotels
Rooms at the Ritz-Carlton Almaty cost from Dh1,944 per night including taxes; and in Astana the new Ritz-Carlton Astana (www.marriott) costs from Dh1,325; alternatively, the new St Regis Astana costs from Dh1,458 per night including taxes.
When to visit
March-May and September-November
Visas
Citizens of many countries, including the UAE do not need a visa to enter Kazakhstan for up to 30 days. Contact the nearest Kazakhstan embassy or consulate.
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Almnssa
Started: August 2020
Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
Investments: Grants/private funding
Results:
Men's wheelchair 800m T34: 1. Walid Ktila (TUN) 1.44.79; 2. Mohammed Al Hammadi (UAE) 1.45.88; 3. Isaac Towers (GBR) 1.46.46.
Ferrari
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Michael%20Mann%26nbsp%3B%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarring%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Adam%20Driver%2C%20Penelope%20Cruz%2C%20Shailene%20Woodley%2C%20Patrick%20Dempsey%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%203%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The specs: 2018 Infiniti QX80
Price: base / as tested: Dh335,000
Engine: 5.6-litre V8
Gearbox: Seven-speed automatic
Power: 400hp @ 5,800rpm
Torque: 560Nm @ 4,000rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 12.1L / 100km
How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
Company%20profile
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%20name%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Letswork%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202018%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Dubai%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounders%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EOmar%20Almheiri%2C%20Hamza%20Khan%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20co-working%20spaces%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%20stage%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20%242.1%20million%20in%20a%20seed%20round%20with%20investors%20including%20500%20Global%2C%20The%20Space%2C%20DTEC%20Ventures%20and%20other%20angel%20investors%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ENumber%20of%20employees%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20about%2020%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
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.
How to avoid crypto fraud
- Use unique usernames and passwords while enabling multi-factor authentication.
- Use an offline private key, a physical device that requires manual activation, whenever you access your wallet.
- Avoid suspicious social media ads promoting fraudulent schemes.
- Only invest in crypto projects that you fully understand.
- Critically assess whether a project’s promises or returns seem too good to be true.
- Only use reputable platforms that have a track record of strong regulatory compliance.
- Store funds in hardware wallets as opposed to online exchanges.
MATCH INFO
Rugby World Cup (all times UAE)
Third-place play-off: New Zealand v Wales, Friday, 1pm
The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
THE SPECS
Engine: 6.75-litre twin-turbocharged V12 petrol engine
Power: 420kW
Torque: 780Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh1,350,000
On sale: Available for preorder now
EXPATS
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How to watch Ireland v Pakistan in UAE
When: The one-off Test starts on Friday, May 11
What time: Each day’s play is scheduled to start at 2pm UAE time.
TV: The match will be broadcast on OSN Sports Cricket HD. Subscribers to the channel can also stream the action live on OSN Play.
Engine: 5.6-litre V8
Transmission: seven-speed automatic
Power: 400hp
Torque: 560Nm
Price: Dh234,000 - Dh329,000
On sale: now
Brolliology: A History of the Umbrella in Life and Literature
By Marion Rankine
Melville House
The specs
Engine: Direct injection 4-cylinder 1.4-litre
Power: 150hp
Torque: 250Nm
Price: From Dh139,000
On sale: Now
The finalists
Player of the Century, 2001-2020: Cristiano Ronaldo (Juventus), Lionel Messi (Barcelona), Mohamed Salah (Liverpool), Ronaldinho
Coach of the Century, 2001-2020: Pep Guardiola (Manchester City), Jose Mourinho (Tottenham Hotspur), Zinedine Zidane (Real Madrid), Sir Alex Ferguson
Club of the Century, 2001-2020: Al Ahly (Egypt), Bayern Munich (Germany), Barcelona (Spain), Real Madrid (Spain)
Player of the Year: Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich)
Club of the Year: Bayern Munich, Liverpool, Real Madrid
Coach of the Year: Gian Piero Gasperini (Atalanta), Hans-Dieter Flick (Bayern Munich), Jurgen Klopp (Liverpool)
Agent of the Century, 2001-2020: Giovanni Branchini, Jorge Mendes, Mino Raiola
