Kerala man wins Rs 28 cr lottery in Abu Dhabi
Dubai, Jan 3: An Indian expatriate on Thursday won 15 million dirhams in the Big Ticket raffle at the Abu Dhabi airport.
Sarath Purushothaman, who is based in Dubai, was among the eight Indians, out of 10 winners of the Big Ticket raffle draw, the Khaleej Times reported.
Purushothaman was announced as the winner of a bumper prize of 15 million dirhams, it said, adding that it was the highest prize ever given away by Big Ticket.
According to the report, Purushothaman was contacted on the phone after the winning ticket was announced, but he thought it to be a prank.
The organisers had to call him one again to confirm that the announcement was legitimate, it said.
The second price of 100,000 dirhams was won by another Indian expat Jinachandran Vazhoor Narayanan.
Among the 10 winners, eight were Indians at the Thursday's draw, while the other two winners were from Pakistan and Fiji.
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UAE set to decline PCB request to host PSL games
Dubai, May 9 (PTI): The PCB's plans to conduct the remaining Pakistan Super League matches in the UAE may not succeed as the Emirates Cricket Board is "unlikely to approve" its request due to the border tensions between India and Pakistan.
A source close to the developments in the Emirates Cricket Board (ECB) has indicated that the Board is set to reject the request from the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), which has already announced that the PSL would be held in the UAE.
The source has cited "security concerns potentially emanating from the rising tension between India and Pakistan."
It is learnt that the recent developments have made the Emirates Cricket Board "vary of being perceived as an ally of PCB", which it believes the act of hosting the PSL may suggest.
"The Emirates Cricket Board has enjoyed a strong relationship with BCCI in recent years having hosted the 'India' edition of the ICC T20 World Cup 2021, editions of the IPL as well as India matches during ICC Champions Trophy 2025," the source further stated.
Dubai is also the headquarter of the International Cricket Council, which is currently headed by former BCCI secretary Jay Shah.
"The UAE has a diverse South Asian population which enjoys cricket. Hosting a tournament like the PSL in the midst of such tense circumstances could vitiate harmony, pose security risks and stir unnecessary friction between communities," the source said.
The PCB said early this morning that the last eight PSL fixtures, which were previously scheduled in Rawalpindi, Multan and Lahore, will now be staged in the UAE.
Schedule of matches, outlining the dates and venues, will be shared in due course, a statement said.
On Thursday, the PCB called off a scheduled match between Peshawar Zalmi and Karachi Kings at the Rawalpindi stadium.
India launched missile attacks on terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan Occupied Jammu and Kashmir a fortnight after the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack in which 26 people were killed.
