Ireland script maiden Test win, defeat Afghanistan by six wickets
Abu Dhabi, Mar 1: Nearly seven years after they were granted Test status, Ireland secured their maiden win in the longest format, defeating Afghanistan by six wickets in a one-off Test here on Friday.
Ireland skipper Andy Balbirne anchored the 111-run chase in their second essay with an unbeaten 58 off 96 balls after pacer Mark Adair's eight-wicket match haul (5/39 and 3/56) to secure their first-ever win in eight Tests.
Opting to bat, Afghanistan's first innings had lasted just 54.5 overs, folding up for 155 with Adair returning with his maiden five-wicket haul, taking advantage of the swinging conditions at the Tolerance Oval here.
He was ably supported by Craig Young (2/31), Curtis Campher (2/13) and Barry McCarthy (1/28).
If not for the patient opening knock of 53 by Ibrahim Zadran and the resistance shown by Karim Janat (41 not out) towards the end, Afghanistan would have ended up with a much lower first-innings score.
In reply, Ireland stuttered at the start before Campher (49) and Harry Tector (32) stabilised the innings.
Despite a brief comeback by Afghanistan, Ireland's middle and lower order put up a solid performance. Aided by mature knocks from Paul Stirling (52), Lorcan Tucker (46) and Andy McBrine (38) Ireland made 263, giving them a handy first-innings lead of 108 runs.
In reply, Afghanistan managed 218 runs in the second innings with Adair and McCarthy claiming three wickets each to set an easy 111-run target.
Afghanistan's top and middle order offered some resistance with crucial knocks from captain Hashmatullah Shahidi (55) and Rahmanullah Gurbaz (46). But Adair removed Shahidi and, along with McCarthy and Craig Young, strangled the scoring rate, returning with 3/24.
Afghanistan, however, reduced Ireland to 13/3, thanks to a stunning opening spell from Naveed Zadran (2/31) and Nijat Masood (1/27).
But Balbirnie held fort in his two-hour knock, combining first with Paul Stirling (14) and then with Lorcan Tucker (27 not out) to eke out the win with two days to spare.
The International Cricket Council (ICC) had on June 22, 2017 confirmed Ireland as Full Member, according them the Test status. But since then, the team has lost seven matches -- twice to England and Sri Lanka, and one each to Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh.
Incidentally, Afghanistan had also secured their first win in Tests against Ireland in 2019.
Brief Scores:
Afghanistan 155 (Ibrahim Zadran 53; Mark Adair 5/39) and 218 (Hashmatullah Shahidi 55; Craig Young 3/24, Barry McCarthy 3/48, Adair 3/56)
Ireland 263 (Paul Stirling 52; Zia-ur-Rahman 5/64) and 111/4 (Andy Balbirnie 58 not out).
A historic moment for Irish cricket as they claim their first-ever Test victory, beating Afghanistan by six wickets in Abu Dhabi ☘👏
— ICC (@ICC) March 1, 2024
Details 👉 https://t.co/DDB4xXWTR9 pic.twitter.com/1gvCM8RUM7
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Iran foreign minister Araghchi meets Pakistan Army chief Munir
Islamabad (PTI): Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Saturday met Pakistan Army chief Field Marshal Asim Munir here, as Islamabad continued its efforts to facilitate engagement between the US and Iran.
The meeting, according to a short video posted by the Iranian embassy on social media, was also attended by Iranian foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei, and Iran's ambassador Reza Amiri Moghadam.
Araghchi calls on Munir, the embassy said in the video caption.
It did not provide further details about the discussions.
Araghchi arrived here late Friday for engagements with the Pakistani leadership. He was received by senior officials, including Munir, foreign minister Ishaq Dar and interior minister Mohsin Naqvi.
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However, there is no clarity on whether direct talks between Washington and Tehran will take place during the visit.
"No meeting is planned to take place between Iran and the US. Iran's observations would be conveyed to Pakistan," Baqaei said in a social media post on Saturday.
Araghchi, before leaving for Islamabad, said that he was embarking on a timely tour of Islamabad, Muscat, and Moscow, and the purpose of his visits is to "closely coordinate with our partners on bilateral matters and consult on regional developments".
"Our neighbours are our priority," he said.
As the Iranian team landed in Islamabad, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said that US Special Envoy on the Middle East Steve Witkoff and President Donald Trump's adviser Jared Kushner would be leaving for Pakistan on Saturday "to engage in direct talks" with representatives of the Iranian delegation.
However, the US team has not yet arrived.
Meanwhile, Pakistan's Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Dar, in a social media post, expressed hope for "meaningful engagements" between the two warring parties to promote regional peace and stability.
The first round of US-Iran talks held on April 11 and 12 failed to produce a breakthrough, prompting a flurry of diplomatic efforts by host Pakistan to cool tensions and revive hopes for another round of dialogue.
On Tuesday, Trump extended the two-week ceasefire with Iran indefinitely to give Tehran more time to prepare a unified proposal to end the war, just hours before the truce was set to expire.
The Iran war began on February 28 with US-Israeli strikes.
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