MELBOURNE // Michael Clarke, the stand-in captain, has denied he will give special treatment to the players attempting to force their way into Australia's World Cup squad when his side meet England in the first one-day international in Melbourne.
Australia are using today's match as a final audition for their fringe players ahead of Wednesday's World Cup squad deadline.
Shaun Tait and Brett Lee, the pace bowlers, are set to go head-to-head as they attempt to complete their late bids for a place in the 15-man squad following injury.
David Hussey will also play his first one-day international since August 2009, while Xavier Doherty, who took four wickets on his debut against Sri Lanka earlier this summer only to suffer a forgettable Ashes series against England, can push his claim to partner Nathan Hauritz, the first-choice spin bowler, on the sub-continent.
With so much riding on the game for those players Clarke is aware they will want adequate opportunity to press their claims, but warned he would only do what was best for the team.
"I don't think it will compromise my captaincy or the team's performance," he said.
"We have one game which is obviously the last opportunity for players to be looked at before the World Cup selection.
"We've got a huge World Cup ahead of us and these seven games [in the series] are pretty important to not only have success in this series but also to build momentum going into that World Cup."
The battle between Tait and Lee, two of the world's fastest bowlers, is the most intriguing.
Both have been beset by injury, with Tait recently returning from an elbow complaint while Lee retired from the longer formats last year to rest his ailing body.
The 34-year-old's decision has been rewarded as he has taken 15 wickets in Australia's domestic 45-over competition this season, the second-most of any bowler.
But while it would seem a straight shoot-out between them, Clarke hinted there may be room for both, alongside fellow pace bowler Mitchell Johnson, in Australia's World Cup squad.
"I see those three guys as quite attacking wicket-taking bowlers," he said. "But when they're bowling well they can also dry the runs up, especially when the ball gets a little bit older.
"If you can get any sort of reverse swing with a bit of protection for the guys they can do that role of bowling fast and straight and dry the runs up.
"Any time the ball is coming at 140-150kmph at you it is hard to start against.
"It is not a bad problem to have when you have three strike bowlers in one squad."
The match will mark the 40th anniversary of limited overs cricket. The first match was also played between these two sides at the MCG on January 5, 1971. Australia won that game by five wickets.
7.20am, Showsports 1 & 2
The currency conundrum
Russ Mould, investment director at online trading platform AJ Bell, says almost every major currency has challenges right now. “The US has a huge budget deficit, the euro faces political friction and poor growth, sterling is bogged down by Brexit, China’s renminbi is hit by debt fears while slowing Chinese growth is hurting commodity exporters like Australia and Canada.”
Most countries now actively want a weak currency to make their exports more competitive. “China seems happy to let the renminbi drift lower, the Swiss are still running quantitative easing at full tilt and central bankers everywhere are actively talking down their currencies or offering only limited support," says Mr Mould.
This is a race to the bottom, and everybody wants to be a winner.
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THE SPECS
Engine: 1.5-litre turbocharged four-cylinder
Transmission: Constant Variable (CVT)
Power: 141bhp
Torque: 250Nm
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BEETLEJUICE BEETLEJUICE
Starring: Winona Ryder, Michael Keaton, Jenny Ortega
Director: Tim Burton
Rating: 3/5
Tightening the screw on rogue recruiters
The UAE overhauled the procedure to recruit housemaids and domestic workers with a law in 2017 to protect low-income labour from being exploited.
Only recruitment companies authorised by the government are permitted as part of Tadbeer, a network of labour ministry-regulated centres.
A contract must be drawn up for domestic workers, the wages and job offer clearly stating the nature of work.
The contract stating the wages, work entailed and accommodation must be sent to the employee in their home country before they depart for the UAE.
The contract will be signed by the employer and employee when the domestic worker arrives in the UAE.
Only recruitment agencies registered with the ministry can undertake recruitment and employment applications for domestic workers.
Penalties for illegal recruitment in the UAE include fines of up to Dh100,000 and imprisonment
But agents not authorised by the government sidestep the law by illegally getting women into the country on visit visas.
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MATCH INFO
Karnatake Tuskers 114-1 (10 ovs)
Charles 57, Amla 47
Bangla Tigers 117-5 (8.5 ovs)
Fletcher 40, Moores 28 no, Lamichhane 2-9
Bangla Tiger win by five wickets
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
U19 World Cup in South Africa
Group A: India, Japan, New Zealand, Sri Lanka
Group B: Australia, England, Nigeria, West Indies
Group C: Bangladesh, Pakistan, Scotland, Zimbabwe
Group D: Afghanistan, Canada, South Africa, UAE
UAE fixtures
Saturday, January 18, v Canada
Wednesday, January 22, v Afghanistan
Saturday, January 25, v South Africa
UAE squad
Aryan Lakra (captain), Vriitya Aravind, Deshan Chethyia, Mohammed Farazuddin, Jonathan Figy, Osama Hassan, Karthik Meiyappan, Rishabh Mukherjee, Ali Naseer, Wasi Shah, Alishan Sharafu, Sanchit Sharma, Kai Smith, Akasha Tahir, Ansh Tandon
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SPECS
Nissan 370z Nismo
Engine: 3.7-litre V6
Transmission: seven-speed automatic
Power: 363hp
Torque: 560Nm
Price: Dh184,500
The specs
Engine: 2.7-litre 4-cylinder Turbomax
Power: 310hp
Torque: 583Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh192,500
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Israel Palestine on Swedish TV 1958-1989
Director: Goran Hugo Olsson
Rating: 5/5
The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre turbo
Power: 181hp
Torque: 230Nm
Transmission: 6-speed automatic
Starting price: Dh79,000
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Directed by: Craig Gillespie
Starring: Emma Stone, Emma Thompson, Joel Fry
4/5
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis