India U-19 beat South Africa U-19 by two wickets on Wednesday and qualified for the final for the fifth consecutive time. The young Men in Blue players. The Proteas did not get off to the best possible start against a formidable Indian bowling assault. Opener Lhuan-dre Pretorius was the highest scorer for the side, scoring 76 runs. Richard Seletswane was the other batsman to score a half-century he was slow towards the start of the innings, scoring 23 off 75 balls before accelerating towards the finish of the innings.
Seletswane scored 64 off 100 deliveries, contributing to the hosts’ total of 244/7 on a dry surface. Raj Limbani was the standout of the bowlers, taking three wickets, Musheer Khan two, and Naman Tiwary and Saumy Pandey one each. The Indian side did not have the start they wanted, but the host nation bowlers got a dream start, picking Adarsh Singh’s wicket with the opening ball of the Indian innings.
The Proteas bowlers rattled the side’s top-order as they struggled at 32/4. After that skipper Uday and Sachin Dhas stitched brilliant a 171-run partnership and helped the team to get through to the final. The latter was dismissed for 96 runs, denying him a well-deserved century. The former remained in the crease to the end and was dismissed for 81 runs, while a solid 13 runs off four balls helped India win another U-19 final.
Skipper Uday shines under pressure
Uday Saharan’s side has been one of the tournament’s most consistent, having won all of their games thus far. The youngsters have been one of the most powerful sides in the major event, and they are presently the reigning champions. They will face the winner of the second semi-final that is Australia or Pakistan on Sunday, February 11.
After the game, Saharan said, “I had a belief on myself that I can do it, just one partnership we needed and could cross the line. When the ball was new, took some time but once it became old we played our shots.”
