DUBAI // Misbah-ul-Haq, the Pakistan captain, is ready to unleash a secret weapon on the England batsmen.
Saeed Ajmal, the Pakistan right-arm off-spin bowler, has developed a new mystery delivery which he plans to used against the likes of Andrew Strauss, Alastair Cook and Kevin Pietersen.
Ajmal had first talked about the delivery - billed the teesra (the third one) - before the 2011 World Cup and intends to have it as part of his bowling arsenal in the three Tests, four one-day internationals and three Twenty20s against the world No 1 Test team.
"He has developed a new delivery," said Misbah yesterday. "He has been practising it for the last two or three months and now he is bowling it really well. So let's see how the England batsmen tackle that."
When asked to explain the specifics of the delivery Misbah said: "That's a secret. When he uses it, you will know then … you will know that he can bowl a teesra.
"Everybody knows that he is a very good bowler and has a lot of variations. So he is the main bowler for us. He is really performing well for Pakistan, but we are not depending on just Saeed Ajmal.
"I believe we have a very good bowling attack, but we have high expectations from Saeed."
Sarfaraz Ahmed, the captain of the Pakistan Cricket Board XI who play an England XI in a three-day warm-up match at the ICC Global Cricket Academy from today, said Ajmal had bowled a few teesras during the last Test series in Bangladesh and placed his compatriot ahead of the England spinner Graeme Swann.
"I believe Saeed Ajmal is better than Graeme Swann because he has got a lot of variety," said Ahmed, a wicketkeeper who claims to be able to read Ajma's teesra. "He's got the off-spinner, the doosra and now the teesra.
"He has a very different style of bowling the doosra and I believe he will give England a difficult time I believe he has already bowled the teesra during the Bangladesh series, so I think you will see it against England as well. He has worked on it since, so let's see how the England batsmen do."
Ejaz Ahmed, the former Pakistan cricketer who is in the UAE as coach of the PCB XI, reminded England about Ajmal's five-wicket haul at Birmingham in the last Test series between the two nations. The 34 year old took 12 wickets in that controversial series, which England won 3-1.
"He has been practising the teesra during the camp," Ejaz said. "In the last series at Birmingham, Ajmal took five wickets against England. So I hope he is going to perform well again."
The 2010 series between the two nations was marred by the spot-fixing scandal, which saw the then Pakistan captain Salman Butt and the bowlers Mohammed Asif and Mohammed Amir, banned for taking money to bowl no-balls at pre-decided times in the Lord's Test. The trio have since been sentenced to prison in England.
But Misbah said the events of 2010 will not cast any shadows over the current series, which starts with the first Test at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium from Tuesday.
"Both teams know we have to just forget the past and move on," he said. "Nobody is worried about what happened in the past. We are just focusing on the present and looking forward to the future.
"That has been the key for us and it has helped our performances. We are here to play hard but fair cricket and make sure cricket is the only point of discussion."
Pakistan have not lost a Test series since losing to England in 2010. They drew 0-0 with South Africa here in the UAE, beat Zimbabwe in the lone Test at Bulawayo, prevailed 1-0 over Sri Lanka in the three Test series here and then blanked Bangladesh 2-0 at home last month.
Misbah is keen to continue that upwards climb. "When you play against the top team of the world, it's a big challenge for you and an opportunity to prove yourself as a player and as a team," Misbah said. "We are looking forward to doing that.
"England are playing really good cricket at the moment and they will be keen to prove they can play better cricket in Asian conditions.
"We also have a point to prove: that we can play really good cricket against a top team. So that will be our focus."
arizvi@thenational.ae
Dates for the diary
To mark Bodytree’s 10th anniversary, the coming season will be filled with celebratory activities:
- September 21 Anyone interested in becoming a certified yoga instructor can sign up for a 250-hour course in Yoga Teacher Training with Jacquelene Sadek. It begins on September 21 and will take place over the course of six weekends.
- October 18 to 21 International yoga instructor, Yogi Nora, will be visiting Bodytree and offering classes.
- October 26 to November 4 International pilates instructor Courtney Miller will be on hand at the studio, offering classes.
- November 9 Bodytree is hosting a party to celebrate turning 10, and everyone is invited. Expect a day full of free classes on the grounds of the studio.
- December 11 Yogeswari, an advanced certified Jivamukti teacher, will be visiting the studio.
- February 2, 2018 Bodytree will host its 4th annual yoga market.
Wicked
Director: Jon M Chu
Stars: Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Jonathan Bailey
COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Total funding: Self funded
Company%20profile
%3Cp%3ECompany%20name%3A%20Shipsy%3Cbr%3EYear%20of%20inception%3A%202015%3Cbr%3EFounders%3A%20Soham%20Chokshi%2C%20Dhruv%20Agrawal%2C%20Harsh%20Kumar%20and%20Himanshu%20Gupta%3Cbr%3EBased%3A%20India%2C%20UAE%20and%20Indonesia%3Cbr%3ESector%3A%20logistics%3Cbr%3ESize%3A%20more%20than%20350%20employees%3Cbr%3EFunding%20received%20so%20far%3A%20%2431%20million%20in%20series%20A%20and%20B%20rounds%3Cbr%3EInvestors%3A%20Info%20Edge%2C%20Sequoia%20Capital%E2%80%99s%20Surge%2C%20A91%20Partners%20and%20Z3%20Partners%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
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.
Feeding the thousands for iftar
Six industrial scale vats of 500litres each are used to cook the kanji or broth
Each vat contains kanji or porridge to feed 1,000 people
The rice porridge is poured into a 500ml plastic box
350 plastic tubs are placed in one container trolley
Each aluminium container trolley weighing 300kg is unloaded by a small crane fitted on a truck
Buy farm-fresh food
The UAE is stepping up its game when it comes to platforms for local farms to show off and sell their produce.
In Dubai, visit Emirati Farmers Souq at The Pointe every Saturday from 8am to 2pm, which has produce from Al Ammar Farm, Omar Al Katri Farm, Hikarivege Vegetables, Rashed Farms and Al Khaleej Honey Trading, among others.
In Sharjah, the Aljada residential community will launch a new outdoor farmers’ market every Friday starting this weekend. Manbat will be held from 3pm to 8pm, and will host 30 farmers, local home-grown entrepreneurs and food stalls from the teams behind Badia Farms; Emirates Hydroponics Farms; Modern Organic Farm; Revolution Real; Astraea Farms; and Al Khaleej Food.
In Abu Dhabi, order farm produce from Food Crowd, an online grocery platform that supplies fresh and organic ingredients directly from farms such as Emirates Bio Farm, TFC, Armela Farms and mother company Al Dahra.
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
Company%20profile
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%20name%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Fasset%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E2019%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounders%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Mohammad%20Raafi%20Hossain%2C%20Daniel%20Ahmed%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Dubai%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EFinTech%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInitial%20investment%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20%242.45%20million%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ECurrent%20number%20of%20staff%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2086%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%20stage%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Pre-series%20B%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Investcorp%2C%20Liberty%20City%20Ventures%2C%20Fatima%20Gobi%20Ventures%2C%20Primal%20Capital%2C%20Wealthwell%20Ventures%2C%20FHS%20Capital%2C%20VN2%20Capital%2C%20local%20family%20offices%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
From Zero
Artist: Linkin Park
Label: Warner Records
Number of tracks: 11
Rating: 4/5
Disclaimer
Director: Alfonso Cuaron
Stars: Cate Blanchett, Kevin Kline, Lesley Manville
Rating: 4/5
Points tally
1. Australia 52; 2. New Zealand 44; 3. South Africa 36; 4. Sri Lanka 35; 5. UAE 27; 6. India 27; 7. England 26; 8. Singapore 8; 9. Malaysia 3
In numbers
1,000 tonnes of waste collected daily:
- 800 tonnes converted into alternative fuel
- 150 tonnes to landfill
- 50 tonnes sold as scrap metal
800 tonnes of RDF replaces 500 tonnes of coal
Two conveyor lines treat more than 350,000 tonnes of waste per year
25 staff on site
Poland Statement
All people fleeing from Ukraine before the armed conflict are allowed to enter Poland. Our country shelters every person whose life is in danger - regardless of their nationality.
The dominant group of refugees in Poland are citizens of Ukraine, but among the people checked by the Border Guard are also citizens of the USA, Nigeria, India, Georgia and other countries.
All persons admitted to Poland are verified by the Border Guard. In relation to those who are in doubt, e.g. do not have documents, Border Guard officers apply appropriate checking procedures.
No person who has received refuge in Poland will be sent back to a country torn by war.
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Almnssa
Started: August 2020
Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
Investments: Grants/private funding
States of Passion by Nihad Sirees,
Pushkin Press
Basquiat in Abu Dhabi
One of Basquiat’s paintings, the vibrant Cabra (1981–82), now hangs in Louvre Abu Dhabi temporarily, on loan from the Guggenheim Abu Dhabi.
The latter museum is not open physically, but has assembled a collection and puts together a series of events called Talking Art, such as this discussion, moderated by writer Chaedria LaBouvier.
It's something of a Basquiat season in Abu Dhabi at the moment. Last week, The Radiant Child, a documentary on Basquiat was shown at Manarat Al Saadiyat, and tonight (April 18) the Guggenheim Abu Dhabi is throwing the re-creation of a party tonight, of the legendary Canal Zone party thrown in 1979, which epitomised the collaborative scene of the time. It was at Canal Zone that Basquiat met prominent members of the art world and moved from unknown graffiti artist into someone in the spotlight.
“We’ve invited local resident arists, we’ll have spray cans at the ready,” says curator Maisa Al Qassemi of the Guggenheim Abu Dhabi.
Guggenheim Abu Dhabi's Canal Zone Remix is at Manarat Al Saadiyat, Thursday April 18, from 8pm. Free entry to all. Basquiat's Cabra is on view at Louvre Abu Dhabi until October
DEADPOOL & WOLVERINE
Starring: Ryan Reynolds, Hugh Jackman, Emma Corrin
Director: Shawn Levy
Rating: 3/5
