India have reached their fourth consecutive Under-19 World Cup final as Yash Dhull’s side thumped Australia by 96 points in the semi-finals to secure a stunning final against England on Saturday. Dhull led from the front with a 110, and with great support from his deputy Shaikh Rasheed (94), they forged a 204-run partnership that helped India recover from 37/2 to eventually finish at 290/5.

Once the batsmen had done their job, it was the turn of the Indian bowlers to ragged Australia. Vicky Ostwal continued his stellar run in the Championship with a 3/42 and joined Nishan Sindhu (2/25) in a 194-run win over Australia in the round of 42. From 75/1, Australia collapsed and burned to 125/7 before India completed the formalities and reached the Under-19 World Cup final.

However, for India, the start is not optimistic. After winning the toss and choosing to bat, Australia bowled in a disciplined channel that did not allow India any motorways. Opener Angkrish Raghuvanshi was batted by William Salzmann and Jack Nisbet also got Harnoor Singh Pannu to pack cheap. But from there, Dhull and Rasheed created something legendary, first settling down and then accelerating in a flashy way to get a run at it.

Starting at 149/2 at the end of the 35th inning, Dhull and Rasheed went all the way with 141 runs in their final 15 innings. On the 13th and 28th, the two batsmen combined for just three fours before the Indian captain started the onslaught.

Dhull and Rasheed took 64 and 78 balls respectively to reach their half-century. While the captain was an accelerator at first, Rashid shifted gears and quickly overtook his captain in scoring. Salzman hit three straight fours in the 41st inning. Dhull had slowed down a bit before heading into the 90s, hitting four consecutive fours and running a pair to complete his first Under-19s in India.

Australia came back with wickets from Dhull and Rasheed after well over 200, but a late cameo from Dinesh Bana, who had 20 from 4 balls, hit two fours and two sixes balls, helping India collect 48 balls from the last 18 to set the target Australia close to 300.

With the ball, Ravi Kumar provided a fantastic start as he trapped the in-form Teague Willy. Campbell Kellaway and Corey Miller tried to rebuild with a 68-run collaboration before Raghuvanshi broke the stands and Ostwal joined the party. Spinning mills made their presence felt when Australia began to crumble.

Jack Synfred and Tom Whitney had nothing to do but close the defeat gap. Rajvardhan Hangargekar impacted Whitney’s game when the last Australian wicket fell, paving the way for Saturday’s India v England final.

Complete News Source : Hindustan Times