POTCHEFSTROOM, South Africa: Bangladesh cricket team clinched its maiden ICC Under-19 World Cup title beating favourites India by three wickets yesterday in the summit clash.
Set a revised target of 170 after a brief rain interruption, Bangladesh won the match with 23 balls to spare. Sent in to bat, India’s batsmen wilted under pressure as a superb Bangladesh bowling attack shot the defending champions out for a paltry 177 in 47.2 overs.
Yasashvi Jaiswal (88 off 121 balls) was once again a standout performer but not for once did he look like dominating the Bangladesh bowling unit whose new ball bowlers Shoriful Islam (2-31 in 10 overs) and Tanzim Hasan Shakib (2-28 in 8.2 overs) literally stifled the Indians for runs.
The third seamer Avishek Das (3-40 in 9 overs) was the most successful bowler in terms of figures but it was Shoriful’s first spell with channelised aggression that put the Indians on the back-foot from the onset.
Dismissal
After, Yashasvi’s dismissal, India went on to lose their next six wickets for 21 runs in the next nine overs.
Islam dismissed Siddesh Veer off the very next ball of the over after which Jorel and Ravi Bishnoi were both run out due to mix-ups between the wicket.
Atharva Ankolekar and Kartik Tyagi were dismissed by Avishek while Sushant Mishra fell to Sakib.
It was Yasashvi’s fourth successive fifty-plus score of the tournament. He hit eight boundaries and one six before getting caught by Tanzid Hassan in the 40th over of the innings.
With his fifth fifty-plus score in the tournament, Yashasvi has become just the third batsman to score five half-centuries in an Under-19 Cricket World Cup.
Jaiswal has now equaled the overall record currently held by Australian Brett Williams (1988) and India’s own Sarfaraz Khan (2016) who both have five 50+ scores each. Yashasvi’s last six scores read 88, 105 not out, 62, 57 not out, 29 not out and 57.
After a short rain break towards the end, the target was revised to 170 from 46 overs but Bangladesh reached 170 for seven in 42.1 overs to win the match.
Opener Parvez Hossain Emon top-scored for Bangladesh with a 79-ball 47 while captain and wicketkeeper Akbar Ali was not out on 43 from 77 deliveries.
For India, Ravi Bishnoi was the most successful bowler with figures of four for 30 while Sushant Mishra finished with figures of two for 25.
India thus missed out on a record fifth title in their seventh final appearance.
Pakistan finished third and New Zealand fourth after their match was washed out to make it 1-2-3 for Asia.
West Indies finished fifth and Australia sixth after their match too was washed out.