Ashleigh Barty marked the Australian Open's inaugural First Nations Peoples Day by cruising into the third round on Wednesday as the tournament top seed continues to highlight her title credentials.
Top seed Barty was far too strong for Lucia Bronzetti on Rod Laver Arena, defeating the Italian qualifier 6-1, 6-1 in well under an hour. She dropped just one game more than her opening round destruction of Ukraine's Lesia Tsurenko.
A proud indigenous Australian, Barty followed in the footsteps of trailblazer Evonne Goolagong Cawley by winning Wimbledon last year.
Barty spoke glowingly of Goolagong Cawley's influence on young indigenous athletes and said she was glad she was able to play a match on "a really special day for our culture and our heritage".
"It was nice for me to be a part of it in a way that I feel most comfortable, I suppose," the world No 1 said. "Out on the tennis court is how I express myself as an athlete, it's how I'm able to express myself as a person as well.
"On a day we're bringing cultures together, it was really nice for me to go out and enjoy that. Just met a few of the kids that have come down from Alice Springs and all around Australia, which is amazing for them."
Earlier on court, Barty hammered 11 winners to wrap up the first set in 25 minutes and was equally dominant in the second
Bronzetti, the world No 142, failed to muster a single break point over the contest as Barty lobbed, sliced and pounded her into submission in the bright Melbourne sunshine.
Barty, 25, is hoping to end Australia's 44-year wait for a homegrown women's champion and was particularly delighted at the turnout for her match so early in the day.
"It was incredible," she said. "It was an awesome surprise to go out there and hear so many Aussies. It was an incredible atmosphere. It was just a lot of fun out there today."
The top seed next faces another Italian in Camila Giorgi with defending champion Naomi Osaka potentially waiting in the fourth round.
Two-time Australian Open champion Victoria Azarenka was almost as emphatic in her second round victory, dominating Switzerland's Jil Teichmann 6-1, 6-2 at the Kia Arena.
The Belarusian former world No 1 will take on Elina Svitolina in the third round after the Ukrainian 15th seed progressed when France's Harmony Tan retired toward the end of the third set, with the match at 6-3, 5-7, 5-1 in Svitolina's favour.
American Madison Keys is also safely through to the third round after a 6-2, 7-5 win over Romania's Jaqueline Adina Cristian.
Keys, a former world No 7 and US Open finalist, has seen her ranking slip to 51 after a year beset by injury, but she is rediscovering her form having won a title in Adelaide in the lead-up to the Australian Open, before eliminating 11th seed Sofia Kenin in the first round.
Wicked
Director: Jon M Chu
Stars: Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Jonathan Bailey
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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.
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Scoreline
Chelsea 1
Azpilicueta (36')
West Ham United 1
Hernandez (73')
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.”
