Chasing a huge target of 338 runs, India scored 339 runs for 9 wickets in 50 overs; 8 runs were needed in the last over, Mohit and Chigurupathi took charge; Aryaveer Sehwag's 58 and Lakshya Raichandani's half-century laid the foundation of victory.
soft spoken desk, New Delhi. The final match of Under-19 Asia Cup between India and Pakistan crossed all limits of excitement. In this match which lasted till the last over, the Indian youth team showed great spirit and won the title by defeating Pakistan by one wicket. Batting first, Pakistan scored 337 runs for 9 wickets in 50 overs. In reply, India won the match by scoring 339 runs in the last over. India needed eight runs in the last over to win and the team achieved the target despite losing nine wickets.
Chasing Pakistan's target of 338 runs, the Indian team got a strong start from opener Aryaveer Sehwag and captain Lakshya Raichandani. Both of them put the team in a good position by adding 95 runs for the first wicket. Aryaveer scored 58 runs in 61 balls with the help of nine fours. His bat continued to shine in this tournament and he scored more than 50 runs for the third consecutive match. He has also been said to be the highest run-scorer batsman of the tournament.
After Aryaveer's dismissal, VK Vineet led the innings along with captain Lakshya Raichandani. There was a good partnership between the two. Lakshya completed his half-century under pressure against Pakistan. This was his second consecutive half-century. At the end of 25 overs, India had scored 132 runs at the loss of one wicket and hopes of victory were looking strong.
But the real test of the Indian innings began after this. Pakistan's bowlers made a comeback and took wickets continuously. On the score of 146 runs, VK Vineet became the victim of Rizwanullah after scoring 24 runs. After this Arjun Rajput was out after scoring 16 runs. Yashvardhan Chauhan could also score only 9 runs. Rizwanullah and Hasnain Abbas Dar increased the pressure on the Indian batting.
In the 37th over, India suffered two consecutive setbacks in two balls. First, Ali Raza got captain Lakshya Raichandani, who was playing after scoring 80 runs, caught by Hasnain. Anvay Dravid was run out on the very next ball after scoring 19 runs. The Indian team, which was once looking in a strong position, suddenly got into trouble. The excitement of the match increased further when India lost nine wickets.
Big score for Pakistan, Indian bowlers comeback in the last overs
Earlier, after winning the toss, Pakistan had decided to bat first. Pakistani opener Usman Khan scored a brilliant century and scored 107 runs. Abdul Qadir played important innings of 80 runs and captain Farhan Yusuf played important innings of 63 runs. Thanks to these three batsmen, Pakistan's score appeared to be moving towards the big target. However, the Indian bowlers made a comeback in the final overs and restricted Pakistan to 337 runs for 9 wickets in 50 overs.
Kavya Patel was the most successful bowler from India. He took four wickets, while C. Venkat got three wickets. Arjun Rajput took one wicket. For Pakistan, Hayam scored 21, Ahmed Hussain scored 17, Niqab Shafiq scored 11, Hamza Zahoor scored 10 and Mohammad Sayam scored 7 runs.
Mohit and Chigurupathi won the title in the last over
India had to score eight runs to win in the last over and only one wicket was left in its account. In such a stressful situation, Mohit and Chigurupathi took charge. The Indian team scored the required runs in the last over and won the match by scoring 339 runs for 9 wickets in 50 overs. In this way, India registered a thrilling victory against Pakistan by one wicket and lifted the Under-19 Asia Cup trophy.
This match became an example of the patience, struggle and spirit of Indian young players to not give up till the last moment. Pakistan made a big score of 337 runs, but the Indian team achieved the target under pressure and won the title.