England moves into position to win 2nd test against Windies
Manchester: England moved into a strong position to win the second test and tie the three-match series after declaring with a lead of 311 before reducing the West Indies to 25-3 by lunch on the final day at Old Trafford on Monday.
Stuart Broad removed John Campbell (4) and Shai Hope (7) either side of Chris Woakes trapping Kraigg Brathwaite (12) lbw in the final half-hour of an action-packed morning session that went completely England's way.
England has a minimum of 74 overs to bowl under gray skies in Manchester and survival was the main aim for the West Indies, whose victory target of 312 looks unfeasible.
Ben Stokes went into limited-overs mode after England resumed on 37-2 and picked up quick runs before an early declaration 11 overs later.
Stokes (78 not out off 57 balls) smashed two sixes over long-off as the big-hitting allrounder and England captain Joe Root put on 53 runs in the first 43 balls of the morning before Root was run out for 22 effectively sacrificing his own wicket to get Stokes back on strike.
Alongside Ollie Pope (12 not out), Stokes still had time to slog Jason Holder down the ground for another six, pushing the lead past 300, before Root called them back in from the pavilion with the team on 129-3.
England had made 92 runs off 66 balls, effectively taking the game away from the Windies.
The early declaration gave England two new balls to get the victory and the team has already made big inroads with the first, with Shamarh Brooks (2) and Roston Chase (0) seeking to repair the West Indies' innings by lunch.
Broad, who has five wickets for the match on his recall to the team, snagged Campbell after a last-second review by Root, with UltraEdge showing a slight nick behind that wasn't heard by the on-field umpire.
Brathwaite didn't even bother reviewing his lbw removal, even though the ball from Woakes struck the back pad above the knee roll.
Then Broad got one to jag back in and beat Hope all ends up, the ball striking the top of off stump and leaving the batsman almost off his feet.
The second new ball will be available after 80 overs for England, which lost the first test by four wickets on the final day in Southampton.
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Israeli strike on Gaza shelter kills 17 as Blinken says cease-fire talks will resume
Deir al-Balah (Gaza Strip), Oct 24: An Israeli strike on a school where displaced people were sheltering in the central Gaza Strip killed at least 17 people on Thursday, nearly all women and children, Palestinian medical officials said.
The strike came as US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Israel had accomplished its objective of “effectively dismantling” Hamas, and that negotiations over a cease-fire and the release of dozens of Israeli hostages would resume in the coming days.
Another 42 people were wounded in the strike in the built-up Nuseirat refugee camp, according to the Awda Hospital, which received the casualties. Among the dead were 13 children under the age of 18 and three women, according to the hospital's records.
The Israeli military said it targeted Hamas group inside the school, without providing evidence. Israel has carried out several strikes on schools-turned-shelters in recent months, saying it precisely targets Hamas members hiding out among civilians. The strikes often kill women and children.
Blinken, speaking to reporters in Qatar, which has served as a key mediator between Israel and Hamas, said negotiators would reconvene “in the coming days”.
“What we really have to determine is whether Hamas is prepared to engage," he said on his 11th visit to the region since the start of the war.
The United States hopes to renew the negotiations after Israeli forces killed top Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar in Gaza last week, but neither side has shown any sign of moderating its demands from months of negotiations that sputtered to a halt over the summer.
Blinken also announced an additional USD 135 million in US aid to the Palestinians, while again urging Israel to allow more assistance to enter the territory.
Health workers in besieged northern Gaza meanwhile warned of a catastrophic situation there, where Israel has been waging an air and ground offensive for more than two weeks.
