Draws for ICC U-19 World Cup announced

Two-time former champions and last event’s runners-up Pakistan have been grouped with New Zealand, Scotland and Afghanistan for the preliminary stage of the ICC Under-19 World Cup to be held next year in AustraliaThe event will get underway in Queensland next year and Scotland will be there as the leading Associate after winning eight of its nine matches during the qualifiers, which took place in Dublin and Derry.Defending champions and hosts Australia will head Group A having been drawn alongside 1998 winner England, Nepal and Ireland.Group B is made up of the last events runners-up and two-time winners Pakistan, including New Zealand, Scotland and Afghanistan while 2000 and 2008 champion India has been drawn in Group C along with West Indies, Zimbabwe and Papua New Guinea.Sri Lanka, South Africa, Bangladesh and Namibia make up Group D.ICC Chief Executive Haroon Lorgat said: The ICC U-19 Cricket World Cup is a very important tournament for us and I want to congratulate those six teams who have qualified to take part in Queensland next year.This tournament has proved to be an important stepping stone for elite young cricketers aspiring to play international cricket. Its an opportunity for them to develop and test their skills in a high-pressure situation against the worlds best at this level, he added.