NE SPORTS BUREAU
POTCHEFSTROOM, FEB 10
Bangladesh clinched their maiden ICC Under-19 World Cup title after beating India by three wickets in a thrilling summit clash in Potchefstroom on Sunday.
In a low-scoring final, Bangladesh first choked India to a meagre 177 in 47.2 overs and then did well enough to score revised target of 170 in 42.1 overs under DLS method.
The star of the day was Bangladesh’s 18-year-old captain Akbar Ali, who showed nerves of steel with a patient 43 not out off 77 balls, which negated more fancied opponent Yashasvi Jaiswal’s 88 off 121 balls.
Akbar’s cool quotient was there for everyone to see as he marshalled his resources brilliantly and then batted responsibly, seeing out India’s threats from leg-spinner Ravi Bishnoi and fast bowler Kartik Tyagi’s spells before reaching the finishing line with ease.
There were two things that cost India dearly. While batting, India lost their last seven wickets for 23 runs. And then while defending, the number of extras (33) bowled did matter in the final context of the game.
Bangladesh’s chase started in earnest with Parvez Hossain Emon (47 off 79 balls) and Tanzid Hasan (17) adding 50 in quick time, primarily due to former’s impressive off-side play.
However, things changed once leg-spinner Bishnoi (4/30 in 10 overs) came into the attack and started bowling his googlies.
First he got Tanzid holed out in the deep and then had Mahmudul Hassan Joy (8) played on with another wrong ‘un and Towhid Hridoy was also rapped on the pads and Dhruv Jurel effected a smart stumping to make it 65 for 4.
With Emon back in the hut due to hamstring injury, it was on skipper Akbar to show composure in the hour of crisis even as left-arm seamer Sushant Singh in his second and third spell got a couple of wickets.
Then, it was Emon who again came back at 102 for 6 as Akbar finally got hold of Bishnoi’s googlies as there was one slog sweep for six. With Bishnoi not having an effective leg-break, he was taken out of the attack.
Emon, despite hamstring issues, fought gamely before Jaiswal bowled his part-time leg-breaks and Garg’s gamble paid off with the opener being caught in the extra cover region to make it 143 for 7.
India’s cricketing battles with Bangladesh have been filled with acrimony over the last few years and the theme continued in this game too, with players from both sides nearly coming to blows after the emotionally charged game.
For India, Yasashvi Jaiswal (88 off 121 balls) was once again a standout performer but the other batsmen struggled to find their touch, as 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. Shoriful and Shakib were not afraid of sledging the Indian batsmen as they bowled full and got the ball to swing away from the left-handers. The fielding was also agile and top-notched, making it difficult throughout the Indian innings.
India lost Divyansh Saxena for 2 off 17 in the seventh over, with the team managing only 9 runs by then. Only 23 came off the first 10 overs. A sedate 93-run stand between Jaiswal and Tilak Verma (38 off 65 balls) in 23.2 overs steadied the ship for India but they could not recover from the slow start.
Captain Priyam Garg was rusty and fell for seven, the lack of game-time evident. And once Jaiswal followed, mistiming a pull shot off Shoriful, India collapsed. From 156 for 3, India lost their last seven wickets for just 21 runs.
Siddhesh Veer (0) was gone off next ball by Shoriful and Dhruv Jurel (22 off 38 balls) lacked partners and was run-out after a horrible mix-up with Atharva Ankolekar (3). Both batsmen were stuck at the same end, with Ankolekar not sacrificing his wicket for the set batsman. Ankolekar then played on soon, as India finished with a below-par score.
