West Indies hold out England for draw in 1st test
St John's, Mar 13: West Indies held on to draw the first test after England made a bold declaration on the final day at Sir Vivian Richards Stadium.
That England came within six wickets of winning on a sluggish pitch with an undermanned bowling attack seamer Mark Wood was injured was testament to its tenacity.
West Indies also deserved credit for holding out after being reduced to 67-4. Nkrumah Bonner and Jason Holder kept England at bay for the last 36 overs, but not without some drama.
After England captain Joe Root notched his 24th test century and was out for 109, England declared its second innings at 349-6 just before lunch and tempted West Indies with a winning target of 286 from 70 overs.
But West Indies lost too many wickets after lunch and went into survival mode, finishing on 147-4. Bonner was 38 not out after facing 138 balls and Holder 37 not out after 101.
Spinner Jack Leach was the main tormentor.
In the 49th over, he rapped Holder on his back pad on 13 but England didn't review.
England used its last review in the 53rd over when Leach thought he got Holder's edge, but no edge was found.
In the 58th, Bonner was given out lbw off Craig Overton, but Bonner reviewed. It showed an inside edge and the out was overturned.
That was England's last chance, as Bonner and Holder held out for an unbeaten stand of 80, after their key stand of 79 in the first innings.
West Indies made 375 and 147-4 in reply to England's 311 and 349-6 declared.
England finished its second innings in the morning, resuming on 217-1.
Zac Crawley added four runs to his overnight score before he was yorked by Holder on 121, and Root moved from 84 to 109 then was bowled by Alzarri Joseph.
Root daringly declared two overs later, and if the West Indies was teased to go for the win, it didn't last long.
Three of the four overs to lunch were maidens.
Opener John Campbell was let off in the eighth over when he was dropped in the slips by Crawley off Leach.
Campbell and captain Kraigg Brathwaite posted their second 50-run opening stand then departed in consecutive overs.
Brathwaite was lbw to Ben Stokes in the 26th over for 33 off 82 balls, then Campbell was dismissed by Leach, caught by Overton at mid off.
Leach got Shamarh Brooks right on tea for 5 at 65-3, and Jermaine Blackwood right after for 2 at 67-4.
Leach bowled 14 maidens in his 30.1 overs of work and took 3-57. But he couldn't prise out Bonner or Holder.
The second of three tests starts on Wednesday in Bridgetown, Barbados.
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Putin meets Iran's FM Araghchi, says Russia ready to do its best to help bring peace to West Asia
Moscow (PTI): Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Monday met Russian President Vladimir Putin, who hailed the Iranian people for fighting bravely and heroically for their sovereignty and said Moscow is ready to do its best to help bring peace to West Asia as soon as possible.
Araghchi, who held talks with Omani and Pakistani leadership before arriving in Russia, met Putin in St. Petersburg and thanked him for supporting Iran, state-owned TASS news agency reported.
"Russia is ready to do everything in its power to ensure that peace in the Middle East is achieved as soon as possible," Putin said during his meeting with Araghchi, which was also attended by Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.
Revealing that he received a message from Iranian Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei last week, Putin asked Araghchi to convey his "gratitude for this message and best wishes for his health and well-being."
He praised the Iranian people for fighting "bravely and heroically" for their sovereignty, Iran's state-run PRESS TV reported.
"We really hope that, based on the courage and desire for independence, the Iranian people, under the guidance of the new leader, will weather this difficult period of trials and peace will come,” Putin said.
He also stressed that Russia “intends to maintain” its strategic relations with Iran.
Araghchi said that the world witnessed Iran’s strength in countering the US during the recent war, and that the Islamic Republic is a "stable and powerful establishment."
"With their courage, the Iranian people succeeded in resisting the US aggression and will be able to endure it,” he said.
He said that it became clear that Iran has “great friends and allies” like Russia, and conveyed “warmest greetings” from Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei and President Masoud Pezeshkian to the Russian leader.
Araghchi said relations between Moscow and Tehran represent a “strategic partnership at the highest level” and will continue to develop "regardless of circumstances."
"We are grateful to you for the solid and strong positions in support of the Islamic Republic of Iran," he said.
Foreign Minister Lavrov said that the talks between President Putin and the Iranian Foreign Minister were "useful and constructive."
Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov later said that Russia is "ready to provide any good offices, any mediation services that are acceptable to the parties."
"We will be ready to do everything so that ultimately peace ensues, guaranteed peace, and that there is no return to hostilities," Peskov was quoted as saying by TASS.
He was asked how Moscow can assist in future negotiations on the Iranian settlement.
Araghchi arrived in Russia after his whirlwind trip to Islamabad, which, according to him, was “very productive” and involved “good consultations" with Pakistan's Army Chief Field Marshal Asim Munir, amid uncertainty over the second round of peace talks to resolve the war in West Asia.
"We held good consultations with our friends in Pakistan. The trip was successful. We assessed the outcome of our recent (meetings) and discussed in what direction and under what conditions talks can move on,” Araghchi said in a video posted on his Telegram channel upon his arrival in St Petersburg.
Referring to the second round of talks between the US and Iran to resolve the conflict in West Asia, Araghchi said: "Developments have taken place in the negotiations."
"Despite some progress in earlier rounds, the talks failed to reach their objectives due to the Americans' approach, the excessive demands they made, and the wrong approaches they adopted. Therefore, it was necessary to consult with our friends in Pakistan to review the latest situation,” Iran's official news agency IRNA quoted him as saying.
He said that the trip to Pakistan was a good opportunity to review developments related to the US-Israeli war against Iran, expressing confidence that “these consultations and coordination between the two countries will be highly significant.”
Araghchi arrived at St. Petersburg's Pulkovo Airport early Monday, where he was welcomed by Russian officials and Iran’s ambassador to Russia, Kazem Jalali, the report said.
The first round of peace talks between Iran and the US, held on April 11 and 12, failed to bring the desired result for the parties to the conflict.
The Iranian minister arrived in Islamabad for the second time on Sunday after a short visit to Oman, where he held talks with Sultan Haitham bin Tariq al-Said on security in the Strait of Hormuz and diplomatic efforts to end the Iran-US conflict.
After Araghchi left Pakistan for Oman on Saturday, President Donald Trump announced that US negotiators Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner would no longer be going to Islamabad for talks with Iran, contending that Washington held all the cards on the matter.
Trump on Sunday reiterated that the US and Iranian officials can talk by phone for a peace solution to the conflict.
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 war began when the US and Israel jointly attacked Iran on February 28, killing Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and several top commanders. The retaliation by the Islamic Republic extended the war to the entire Gulf region.
