England captain Ben Stokes said the mental well-being of his players would take precedence over results as his side prepare for the final two Tests of a chastening Ashes series against Australia.
England arrive in Melbourne trailing 3-0 after Australia’s 82-run victory in Adelaide sealed an unassailable lead and retained the urn, but the fallout since Sunday has extended well beyond the boundary rope.
Reports of players adopting a “stag party” mentality during a mid-series trip to the Queensland resort of Noosa have intensified scrutiny on a squad already under fire for its on-field performances.
With England director of cricket Rob Key pledging to investigate claims of excessive drinking, Stokes struck a protective tone when addressing reporters at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Wednesday, insisting his immediate focus was on safeguarding his players amid the growing storm.
“With the reports and everything circulating around right now, my main concern right now is my players,” Stokes said.
“How I handle this moment right now is the most important thing to me. The welfare of everyone in there, and probably some certain individuals as well, is the most important thing to me right now.
“This kind of stuff is something that I have firsthand experience of, how it can affect people. And my role as England captain is to protect my players as much as I possibly can.”
Stokes’ comments carried particular weight given his own well-documented struggles away from the game. The all-rounder stepped away from cricket in 2021 to prioritise his mental health, following years in which his private life and professional career were played out under intense public scrutiny.
“It’s never a nice place to be when not only the media world but also the social media world is just piling on top of you,” he said.
“It’s a very tough place to be in as an individual, and when you know you’ve got the support of the people who are leaders, it’s very good to know that you’ve got that support.”
Stokes acknowledged that England’s performances had invited criticism, conceding that defeat leaves little room for complaint. However, he drew a distinction between analysis of cricketing shortcomings and the more personal nature of online reaction, particularly where leaked footage or speculation is involved.
“When you are 3-0 down and you’ve lost the series, everything you say, everything you do, gets scrutinised, and rightly so,” he said. “You don’t really have a leg to stand on when you’ve lost three games in a huge series like this.”
England will name their team later on Wednesday ahead of the fourth Test, which begins on Friday. While the urn is already gone, Stokes insisted his priority over the remainder of the tour is ensuring his players are supported as they attempt to restore pride in Melbourne and Sydney.
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.”
Tamkeen’s offering
- Option 1: 70% in year 1, 50% in year 2, 30% in year 3
- Option 2: 50% across three years
- Option 3: 30% across five years
The years Ramadan fell in MayCOMPANY%20PROFILE
%3Cp%3EFounder%3A%20Hani%20Abu%20Ghazaleh%3Cbr%3EBased%3A%20Abu%20Dhabi%2C%20with%20an%20office%20in%20Montreal%3Cbr%3EFounded%3A%202018%3Cbr%3ESector%3A%20Virtual%20Reality%3Cbr%3EInvestment%20raised%3A%20%241.2%20million%2C%20and%20nearing%20close%20of%20%245%20million%20new%20funding%20round%3Cbr%3ENumber%20of%20employees%3A%2012%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Global state-owned investor ranking by size
1.
United States
2.
China
3.
UAE
4.
Japan
5
Norway
6.
Canada
7.
Singapore
8.
Australia
9.
Saudi Arabia
10.
South Korea
How%20champions%20are%20made
%3Cp%3E%0D%3Cstrong%3EDiet%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20%0D%3Cbr%3E7am%20-%20Protein%20shake%20with%20oats%20and%20fruits%0D%3Cbr%3E10am%20-%205-6%20egg%20whites%0D%3Cbr%3E1pm%20-%20White%20rice%20or%20chapati%20(Indian%20bread)%20with%20chicken%0D%3Cbr%3E4pm%20-%20Dry%20fruits%20%0D%3Cbr%3E7.30pm%20-%20Pre%20workout%20meal%20%E2%80%93%20grilled%20fish%20or%20chicken%20with%20veggies%20and%20fruits%0D%3Cbr%3E8.30pm%20to%20midnight%20workout%0D%3Cbr%3E12.30am%20%E2%80%93%20Protein%20shake%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETotal%20intake%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%204000-4500%20calories%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESaidu%E2%80%99s%20weight%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20110%20kg%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStats%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Biceps%2019%20inches.%20Forearms%2018%20inches%3C%2Fp%3E%0A