India’s road to the U-19 World Cup 2024 final

India will take on Australia in the U-19 World Cup 2024 final at Willowmoore Park in Benoni on Sunday, February 11. This will be the third straight meeting between the two sides at an ICC event.

Last year, India and Australia met in the final of the World Test Championship (WTC) at The Oval as well as in the summit clash of the ODI World Cup at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. The Aussies won both contests in what was a memorable year for them.

The Men in Blue have a much better record over Australia in the U-19 World Cup. The two sides have met twice in the finals of the ICC event, with India winning on both occasions.

India beat Australia by six wickets in Townsville in the 2012 final. Chasing 226, they got home in 47.4 overs. India faced the Aussies again in the 2018 U-19 World Cup final at Mount Maunganui. The Prithvi Shaw-led side registered a thumping win by eight wickets as India chased 217 without much trouble.

Overall, India have won the championship five times and are the most successful team in the tournament. In fact, the India will be playing in their fifth consecutive U-19 World Cup final. As the Men in Blue prepare for yet another summit clash in the ICC event, we trace the team’s path to the final.

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Cruising through the group stage

The Men in Blue have been dominant in the U-19 World Cup 2024. (Pic: Getty Images)

India were placed in Group A along with Bangladesh, Ireland, and the United States and topped the group comfortably, winning all three matches.

In their opening match of the U-19 World Cup 2024 in Bloemfontein, they beat Bangladesh by 84 runs. Batting first, they were held to 251/7 on the board despite Adarsh Singh’s 76 and skipper Uday Saharan’s 64. However, Saumy Pandey starred with 4/24 as Bangladesh were bowled out for 167 in 45.5 overs.

India’s next match was against Ireland in which they registered a thumping 201-run win. Musheer Khan scored 118 and skipper Saharan 75 as the Men in Blue put up 301/7 batting first. Naman Tiwari (4/53) and Saumy Pandey (3/21) then shone with the ball as Ireland were bundled out for 100 in 29.4 overs.

Team India continued their winning streak with another 201-run triumph over the USA. Arshin Kulkarni’s 108 and Musheer’s 73 saw the Men in Blue post 326/5. Tiwari then claimed 4/20, while the others also chipped in as USA crawled to 125/8 in 50 overs.

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Thumping wins in the Super Six round

India did not have much trouble in the Super Six round as well, registering easy wins over New Zealand and Nepal in Bloemfontein by 214 and 132 runs respectively.

The Men in Blue were asked to bat first by the Kiwis in their first Super Six match. They ended up scoring a competitive 295/8 as Musheer again starred with 131, while opener Adarsh Singh contributed 52. On the bowling front, Pandey claimed 4/19, while Raj Limbani and Musheer chipped in with two scalps apiece as New Zealand were bundled out for 81 in 28.1 overs.

In the clash against Nepal, India batted first again and put up 297/5 courtesy of tons from Saharan (100) and Sachin Dhas (116). Pandey then picked up 4/29, while Arshin claimed 2/18 as Nepal were held to 165/9.

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Staving off resistance from spirited South Africa in semi-final

South Africa gave India a tough fight in the U-19 World Cup 2024 semi-final. (Pic: Getty Images)

India’s first real challenge in the U-19 World Cup 2024 came in the first semi-final in Benoni against a strong South African side. The Men in Blue, however, held their nerves to sneak home to a two-wicket win and book their berth in yet another U-19 World Cup final.

Sent into bat, the Proteas put up 244/7 as opener Lhuan-dre Pretorius contributed 76 and Richard Seletswane 64. For India, Limbani picked up 3/60, while Musheer registered figures of 2/43 from his 10 overs.

In reply, the Men in Blue crumbled to 32/4 as Kwena Maphaka (3/32) and Tristan Luus (3/37) picked up key wickets. However, Dhas (96) and captain Saharan (81) added 171 for the fifth wicket to bring the chase back on track. They lost a few more wickets but did well enough to confirm their seat in the U-19 World Cup 2024 final.