From the Editors: Happy ‘Twosday’ Everyone

HAPPY ‘TWOSDAY’ EVERYONE: It’s 22.2.22 today, and we’ve been flooded with messages on social media and elsewhere on how the red letter day is significant in more ways than one - or two. We’ve been told the date is both a palindrome and an ambigram as it reads the same from left to right, right to left and upside down. The ‘Twosday’ happens to be Tuesday too. We hear 22 per cent retail discounts and offers in twos are also aplenty. Even Google seems to be marking the day, by showering a confetti of 2s on us when we do a ‘Twosday’ search. It’s ‘twomuch’ to resist, so let’s just join the party of twos. Happy ‘Twosday’ 2 you. [COMMENT BY: Sharmila Dhal, UAE Editor]

ANOTHER YEAR, ANOTHER WIN FOR DXB: More than the 29 million plus international passenger numbers that Dubai International reported for 2021, it’s the mention of the 55.1 million forecast that assumes significance. Not just that, but the fact that even this number could be exceeded by a “significant margin” if current travel trends continue. Dubai is racing to reclaim the traveller numbers from the pre-Covid times – and even improve upon them, if given the chance. So, when Dubai International came up tops for an eighth consecutive year in international passenger numbers, it was more about ticking off another milestone in Dubai’s post-pandemic plans. Now, with just over a month to go for the Expo to get over, Dubai will offer more reasons – existing and new ones – to keep DXB humming with activity 24x7. With more countries making it easier for all vaccinated travelers to board flights, DXB’s target of 55.1 million is well within its sights. [COMMENT BY: Manoj Nair, Business Editor]

T20 WORLD CUP: UAE IN STRONG PUSH FOR A TICKET DOWN UNDER: The UAE cricket team, led by Ahmed Raza, are a win away from securing a berth in the 2022 T20 World Cup in Australia later this year. They are among the four semi-finalists of the T20 World Cup Qualifier ‘A’ semifinals in Oman – where the UAE will take on Nepal and Ireland will play Oman later today. The two finalists in this group will take up the 13th and 14th spots for the global T20 showpiece, with the last two places decided at the ‘B’ Qualifier in July. The UAE team is in the semi-final after showing their quality early in the group stage, accounting for Full Member Ireland in an 18-run victory before brushing aside the German challenge. They lost the final game against Bahrain on Monday despite the young Vriitya Aravind scoring a valiant unbeaten 84, but the UAE advanced to the last four with a better run-rate. Good luck to Raza and his men![COMMENT BY: Gautam Bhattacharyya, Senior Associate Editor]

BRITNEY READY TO SHARE HER TRUTH: Britney Spears has only just started to speak her truth and if her new $15 million book deal is anything to go by, she has many more stories to share from her time spent under the controversial 13-year-long conservatorship that she deemed abusive. Publishing house Simon & Schuster has reportedly signed her on for a tell-all memoir that is sure to shake up the family tree going by the singer’s own court testimony against her father and his role in the conservatorship, followed by social media blasts slamming her sister Jamie Lynn and her recent biography, which Britney said was a ploy to cash in on her fame. Going by the fan frenzy following the news of the book deal, Britney’s memoir is already on its way to become a best-seller. [COMMENT BY: Bindu Rai, Entertainment Editor]