A spotless campaign with six straight victories and the Indian team finds itself, yet again, in the final of the ICC Under-19 World Cup.
The defending champions led by Uday Saharan are now one victory away from reclaiming the title they have won five times previously and have just Australia standing in their way - as the two teams face off in the final on Sunday at Benoni in South Africa.
But ahead of the big game, here's a look at the team's campaign in the tournament so far where they won all three of their group stage matches, their two Super Six games and the big semi-final against hosts South Africa.
Ground A, Match 3: India beat Bangladesh by 84 Runs
India kicked off their World Cup campaign with a convincing 84 run win against Bangladesh on 20 Jan, 2024.
Maruf Mridha broke through early for Bangladesh, removing Arshin Kulkarni and Musheer Khan inside the Powerplay but Adarsh Singh and captain Uday Saharan struck a fifty each to bail India out of trouble with a brilliant 116-run stand for the third wicket. Maruf was at the top of his game, bagging a five-wicket haul in the first game of the tournament, however, late contributions from Aravelly Avanish and Sachin Dhas propelled India to a formidable total of 251/7.
In reply, Bangladesh put on a steady 38-run stand for the opening wicket but the good work was undone by wickets in the Powerplay courtesy of Raj Limbani and Saumy Pandey (4/24). The team went from 38/0 to 50/4 before Ariful Islam and Mohammad Shihab James stabilised the innings, yet once Musheer broke the partnership, the remaining Bangladesh wickets fell quickly, and they were eventually bowled out for 167.
Group A, Match 15: India beat Ireland by 201 Runs
India showcased pure dominance with both bat and ball in a resounding 201-run victory over Ireland in their second group stage match. Musheer Khan (118) and Uday Saharan (75) were the stars of the batting innings as they forged a 156-run stand for the third wicket. Aravelly Avanish and Sachin Dhas once again played handy cameos to take India’s total past the 300-run mark.
In pursuit of 302, Ireland faced early setbacks as Naman Tiwari ran through the top order with a four-wicket haul. Saumy Pandey picked up three wickets as Ireland were bundled out for 100, with only four batsmen managing to reach double-digit scores.
Group A, Match 23: India beat USA by 201 Runs
The Indian juggernaut rolled on with yet another victory by a massive margin of 201 runs against USA in the final group-stage match. Batting first again, India managed to put on another massive 300-run plus score on board. Arshin Kulkarni anchored the majority of the innings en route to his century and was well supported by Musheer Khan’s fifty.
The lower order came to the party again, taking India to 326/5. In reply, USA lost three wickets inside eight overs and struggled to come to terms with India’s depth of bowling talent.
Utkarsh Srivastava's resilient 40 prevented a complete collapse, allowing USA to bat out the full 50 overs. USA could only muster a total of 125/8 in the innings with Naman Tiwari continuing his impressive form, recording his second consecutive four-wicket haul.
Super Sixes: India beat New Zealand by 214 Runs
India carried forward their momentum from the Group Stages to the Super Six with another massive 214-run win over New Zealand. Musheer Khan played a stellar innings, smashing his second century of the tournament with a brilliant score of 131, guiding India to a total of 295/8.
Adarsh Singh played a crucial supporting role, again contributing with a fifty. Raj Limbani put India on top early with a blend of pace and swing contributing to two quick wickets, before Saumy Pandey picked up another four-wicket haul to roll New Zealand over for just 81.
Super Sixes: India beat Nepal by 132 Runs
India punched their ticket to the semi-final with a resounding 132 run victory over Nepal in the final Super Six game. Uday Saharan and Sachin Dhas smashed a century each as they forged a 215-run stand - the highest fourth wicket partnership in U19 Men’s Cricket World Cup history.
Chasing 298, Nepal put on a solid 48-run stand for the opening wicket but were rocked by the flurry of wickets that followed, led by Saumy Pandey’s four-for. With only five batters reaching double-digit scores, Nepal concluded their innings at 165/9, falling short of the target set by India by 132 runs.
1st Semi-Final: India beat South Africa by 2 Wickets
India's first knockout game in the tournament was also the only one where the team was challenged, after they restricted South Africa to 244/7. It was also the first time India bowled first in the tournament after skipper captain Uday Saharan won the toss.
Opener Lhuan-dre Pretorius top-scored for the hosts with 76 while Richard Seletswane made 64 as South Africa set India a target of 245. It was the first time a team had got past the 200-run mark against India in the tournament.
In the chase, India lost opener Adarsh Singh off the first ball and at one stage, the team was struggling at 32/4 by 11.2 overs. Saharan and Sachin Dhas though pulled off a great rescuing act, both scoring half centuries and adding 171 runs for the fifth wicket. By the time Sachin Dhas got out on 96, they had got the team to 203/5 in 42.1 overs but the two had done enough to get India close to the finish line. Raj Limbani closed out the chase with a boundary on the penultimate ball of the 49th over.
(With inputs from IANS)
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