Fred Smith, FedEx founder who revolutionised package delivery business, passes away at 80
Memphis (AP): Fred Smith, the FedEx Corp. founder who revolutionised the express delivery industry, has died, the company said. He was 80.
FedEx started operating in 1973, delivering small parcels and documents more quickly than the postal service. Over the next half-century, Smith, a Marine Corp. veteran, oversaw the growth of a company that became something of an economic bellwether because so many other companies rely on it.
Memphis, Tennessee-based FedEx became a global transportation and logistics company that averages 17 million shipments per business day. Smith stepped down as CEO in 2022 but remained executive chairman.
Smith, a 1966 graduate of Yale University, used a business theory he came up with in college to create a delivery system based on coordinated air cargo flights centred on a main hub, a "hub and spokes" system, as it became known.
The company also played a major role in the shift by American business and industry to a greater use of time-sensitive deliveries and less dependence on large inventories and warehouses.
Smith once told The Associated Press that he came up with the name Federal Express because he wanted the company to sound big and important when in fact it was a start-up operation with a future far from assured.
At the time, Smith was trying to land a major shipping contract with the Federal Reserve Bank that didn't work out.
In the beginning, Federal Express had 14 small aircraft operating out of the Memphis International Airport flying packages to 25 US cities.
Smith's father, also named Frederick, built a small fortune in Memphis with a regional bus line and other business ventures. Following college, Smith joined the US Marines and was commissioned a second lieutenant. He left the military as a captain in 1969 after two tours in Vietnam where he was decorated for bravery and wounds received in combat.
He told The Associated Press in a 2023 interview that everything he did running FedEx came from his experience in the Marines, not what he learned at Yale.
Getting Federal Express started was no easy task. Overnight shipments were new to American business and the company had to have a fleet of planes and a system of interconnecting air routes in place from the get-go.
Though one of Memphis' best-known and most prominent citizens, Smith generally avoided the public spotlight, devoting his energies to work and family.
Despite his low profile, Smith made a cameo appearance in the 2000 movie “Castaway” starring Tom Hanks. The movie was about a FedEx employee stranded on an island.
“Memphis has lost its most important citizen, Fred Smith,” said U.S. Rep. Steve Cohen of Tennessee, citing Smith's support for everything from the University of Memphis to the city's zoo. “FedEx is the engine of our economy, and Fred Smith was its visionary founder. But more than that, he was a dedicated citizen who cared deeply about our city."
Smith rarely publicized the donations he and his family made, but he agreed to speak with AP in 2023 about a gift to the Marine Corps Scholarship Foundation to endow a new scholarship fund for the children of Navy service members pursuing studies in STEM.
“The thing that's interested me are the institutions and the causes not the naming or the recognition,” Smith said at the time.
Asked what it means to contribute to the public good, he replied:
“America is the most generous country in the world. It's amazing the charitable contributions that Americans make every year. Everything from the smallest things to these massive health care initiatives and the Gates Foundation and everything in between,” he said.
“I think if you've done well in this country, it's pretty churlish for you not to at least be willing to give a pretty good portion of that back to the public interest. And all this is in the great tradition of American philanthropy.”
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Rohit identifies Arshdeep, Hardik as key to India's chances in T20 World Cup
New Delhi (PTI): T20 World Cup-winning captain Rohit Sharma reckons all-rounder Hardik Pandya and left-arm seamer Arshdeep Singh will hold the key to India's prospects in the upcoming edition of the tournament.
Defending champions India will enter the T20 showpiece as one of the overwhelming favourites due to their massive depth and quality.
Rohit highlighted Arshdeep's effectiveness with the new ball and at the death.
"It is a big positive to have both Jasprit Bumrah and Arshdeep Singh together because they always attack for wickets. Arshdeep's biggest strength is swinging the new ball and taking early wickets. He mainly bowls with the new ball and at the death. Starting and finishing are the most important phases, and he is strong in both," Rohit told JioHotstar.
"With the new ball, he swings it to get left-handers caught in the slips and targets the pads of right-handers. He has also started taking the ball away from right-handers. These skills are key for a new-ball bowler. He always tries to take wickets, which is why he bowls the first over."
Rohit added, "In the 2024 T20 World Cup final against South Africa, he did a great job. I still remember he dismissed Quinton de Kock when he was set and batting well. In the 19th over, he gave away just two or three runs, which built pressure on the South Africans.
"That is his game, bowling with the new ball and at the death, and he will play a key role for India in the 2026 T20 World Cup."
India won the last edition of the tournament in the Americas under Rohit's captaincy, after which the dashing opener retired from the T20 format internationally.
Rohit also spoke about how Hardik's dual role as a finisher and multi-phase bowler provides crucial balance to the Indian team.
"Whenever Hardik Pandya is in the team, his role is huge. He bats and bowls very consistently. His batting is crucial when the team is stuck. If we have a score of 160 on the board in 15-16 overs and Hardik is batting, then he's the one who can help the team reach 210-220 from there or if we are 50 for 4, he has to build the innings.
"Batting in the middle order at 5, 6, or 7 is very tough. That is why Hardik's role is critical in any format. We know his bowling. He bowls in key phases, with the new ball, in the middle and in the death as well. His role is very important because he gives the team balance, letting us play six bowlers and keep our batting deep."
Rohit said accommodating both Kuldeep Yadav and Varun Chakravarthy together in the playing XI is going to be a big challenge for the Indian team management.
"The biggest challenge for captain Suryakumar Yadav and coach Gautam Gambhir will be how to play both Kuldeep Yadav and Varun Chakaravarthy together. If you want that combination, you can only do it if you play with two seamers, which is a big challenge.
"But honestly, I would be tempted to play both Varun and Kuldeep because they are wicket-takers and batters struggle to read them. I would surely pick them."
The former India skipper added, "Looking at the conditions in India, like in this New Zealand series, there is a lot of dew. In February and March, dew will be heavy across most parts as winter ends.
"Even in Mumbai, which doesn't get cold, there's still dew. I'd say 90-95 percent of grounds in India have dew. That's the challenge. What do the coach and captain think? Are they comfortable with three spinners? Then they can play spin, but there's no fixed rule. It depends on the team leaders' thinking."
Rohit also urged Kuldeep to stop appealing on every ball and to rely on the wicketkeeper's judgment for reviews.
"My one simple advice to Kuldeep is to just bowl quietly and go back to his mark. You can't appeal on every ball. This is basic. I keep saying it, but it still happens often. Even after telling him many times, he appeals at every chance. You have to use your head. Just because it touches the pad, it doesn't mean it's out every time. This isn't gully cricket.
"I get he is enthusiastic, but think of the team first. Each team only gets two DRS reviews. If I was the keeper, I could see where the ball pitched and if it was hitting, I could tell the bowler.
"But from covers or slip, you don't know the angle. You have to listen to what the keeper and bowler say. That's why when there's a review off Kuldeep's bowling, I don't look at him, I look at the keeper to decide."
The T20 World Cup is scheduled to be held in venues across India and Sri Lanka from February 7 to March 8.
