Antigua, Feb 4 (Agency) An exciting battle is on the cards as India and England lock horns in the final of the ICC Men’s Under-19 World Cup here on Saturday. India registered a comprehensive 96-run win over Australia in the semifinal on Wednesday. On Tuesday, England edged past Afghanistan by 15 runs to reach the final as the first team to book their spot. It will be India’s fourth successive final, while England has never won the tournament since 1998. Both the teams have a repertoire of brilliant batsmen. Captain Yash Dhull will come into the final with an excellent 110 runs in the semifinal match. Opener Angkrish Raghuvanshi is the highest run-scorer for India in the tournament with 278 runs to his name at an average of 55.60. It includes a best of 144 against Uganda in the group stage. All-rounder Raj Angad Bawa has been the standout player for India in this tournament.
He has amassed 217 runs, which includes a record-breaking not-out knock of 162 against Uganda. He also picked up four wickets at an average of 29.75. For England, Captain Tom Prest and belligerent Jacob Bethel have excelled throughout the tournament. Prest has so far 292 runs at an average of 73. He scored a century against UAE in the group stage, as well as a half-century against Canada. Wrist-spinner Rehan Ahmed has been the standout player for England in this tournament. He has impressed with his skill and art, and has played a crucial role for England in giving them important breakthroughs in the middle-overs. Ahmed has so far picked up 12 wickets in just three matches, at an average of 9.91, and will be the main threat in the final against India. The Indian bowlers have taken 50 wickets in the tournament, which is a wicket more compared to England. Left-arm orthodox spinner Vicky Ostwal is the highest wicket-taker for India with 12 wickets to his name at an average of 10.75. He has registered his best figures of 5 for 28 against South Africa in their very first match of this competition.
For England, left-arm pacer Joshua Boyden is England’s highest wicket-taker with 13 wickets to his name at an average of 9.53. India were tested in their very first match of the tournament against South Africa. The Proteas got some early breakthroughs and India were off to a shaky start. But a good innings of 82 from skipper Dhull and vital contributions from the middle and lower order got them to a competitive total of 232. Ostwal registered a five-wicket haul, while seamer Bawa picked up four wickets. India dominated the tournament thereafter registering wins against Ireland and Uganda by massive margins of 174 and 326 runs respectively. Covid-19 affected the camp as they lost key players for a couple of matches but India showed how much depth they had as the players on the bench delivered impactful performances. The Indian colts came up with equally strong performances in the knockout stages. They defeated Bangladesh by five wickets in the quarterfinals and took down Australia by 96 runs in the semifinals to make it to the final. On the other hand, England started their journey against Bangladesh in Basseterre. They made their intentions very clear in the first match, demonstrating how ruthless they can be, bowling the young Bangla Tigers out for just 97 runs and then chasing the target down with seven wickets remaining.
They were equally dominant in the next two matches as they won by 106 runs against Canada, and saw off UAE by 189 runs. England faced a stronger unit in South Africa in the quarterfinals, but delivered a thoroughly professional performance chasing down a target of 210 with six wickets remaining. They looked like an unstoppable force and were the favourites going into the semi-finals against Afghanistan, but faced their toughest test so far as the Afghans reduced them to 106/5. England were staring down the barrel, but superb fifties by George Bell and Alex Horton helped them reach a competitive 231/6. Afghanistan struggled chasing down their revised target of 230 in 47 overs after rain. The Afghan batters tried their best and kept England under pressure throughout the game, but the English bowlers restricted the Afghans to 15 runs short of the target. So, the final has all the ingredients to go either way, but India were the favourites to prevail in the summit clash before the tournament commenced. They have remained true to it by completely dominating the tournament, never once looking like losing.