India knock Pakistan out of ICC Under-19 World Cup

BLAVAYO (Dunya News) – India secured a 58-run victory over Pakistan to reach the semi-finals of the ICC Men’s U19 World Cup at Queens Sports Club on Sunday.

Batting first, India posted a competitive total of 252 runs, building solid partnerships that put pressure on the Pakistani bowlers throughout their innings.

Early breakthroughs by Pakistan gave brief hope, but India’s middle-order batsmen stabilized the innings and pushed the score past 250.

Chasing a target of 253, Pakistan’s innings began positively with openers Sameer Minhas and Hamza Zahoor putting up a steady opening stand. Minhas was the first to fall for 9, caught by Henil Patel, ending the 23-run partnership. Zahoor then combined with Usman Khan for a 50-run second-wicket partnership, keeping Pakistan in contention early on. However, Kanishk Chouhan’s wicket of Zahoor at 88-2 in the 17th over disrupted the chase and slowed Pakistan’s scoring momentum.

Despite contributions from Farhan Yousaf and Usman Khan, who added 63 runs together for the fourth wicket, Pakistan struggled to keep up with the required run rate. Key dismissals, including Usman falling for 66 and Farhan for 38, left Pakistan reeling at 159-4. Subsequent quick wickets of middle-order and lower-order batsmen ensured Pakistan could not recover, as India’s bowlers Khilan Patel and Ayush Mhatre consistently broke partnerships to seal the 58-run victory.

India’s innings had been built on strong partnerships and timely contributions. Aaron George and Vaibhav Sooryavanshi gave India a solid start before Pakistan struck back, removing Sooryavanshi and captain Ayush Mhatre early. The middle order, anchored by Vedant Trivedi, who scored 68, kept India on track, while RS Ambrish and Kanishk Chouhan accelerated the scoring in the final overs to take the total beyond 250. Subhan and the Pakistani bowlers made inroads late, but India’s solid foundation ensured a challenging target for the chase.

Teams

Pakistan (Playing XI): Hamza Zahoor(w), Sameer Minhas, Usman Khan, Ahmed Hussain, Farhan Yousaf (c), Huzaifa Ahsan, Ali Hassan Baloch, Abdul Subhan, Momin Qamar, Mohammad Sayyam, Ali Raza

India (Playing XI): Aaron George, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Ayush Mhatre (c), Vihaan Malhotra, Abhigyan Kundu(w), Vedant Trivedi, RS Ambrish, Kanishk Chouhan, Khilan Patel, Henil Patel, Deepesh Devendran