The first match of the Under-19 World Cup is being played between India and the United States. India won the toss and elected to bowl first on Thursday. Batting first, the USA were all out for 107 in 35.2 overs at the Queens Sports Club in Bulawayo. Nitish Sudini top-scored for the USA with 36 runs. The Indian bowlers performed brilliantly.
India U-19 bowlers were on point in today’s match
Henil Patel took 5 wickets, while Vaibhav Suryavanshi, Deepesh Devendran, RS Ambris and Khilan Patel took 1 wicket each. Chasing a target of 108, India suffered an early setback when Vaibhav Suryavanshi was dismissed for just 2 runs, bowled by American pacer Ritwik Appidi. India then scored 21 runs for the loss of 1 wicket in 4 overs. Captain Ayush Mhatre was at the crease with 15 runs and Vedant Trivedi with 2 runs.
However, play has been halted due to rain. England defeated India in the warm-up match. Apart from India and USA, Group B also includes Bangladesh and New Zealand. The team led by Ayush Mhatre has emerging players like Vaibhav Suryavanshi and Vihaan Malhotra. The Indian team reached the Under-19 World Cup after clean sweeping South Africa 3-0. However, it faced defeat in the warm-up match against England.
Teams
India: Ayush Mhatre ( captain ), Vaibhav Suryavanshi, Vedant Trivedi, Vihaan Malhotra, Abhigyan Kundu (wicketkeeper), Harvansh Pangalia, RS Ambris, Kanishk Chauhan, Henil Patel, Dipesh Devendran, Khilan Patel.
USA: Utkarsh Srivastava (captain), Amrinder Gill, Sahil Garg, Arjun Mahesh (wicketkeeper), Ritwik Appidi, Adneet Jhamb, Amogh Arepalli, Nitish Sudini, Sabreesh Prasad, Shiv Shani, Adit Kappa, Rishabh Shimpi.
India has five U-19 World Cup titles. India is the most successful team in the history of the Under-19 World Cup. The team has won the title five times (2000, 2008, 2012, 2018, and 2022), while also finishing as runners-up in 2006, 2016, 2020, and 2024.
The current champions are Australia, who won the trophy after defeating India in the 2024 final. Australia has won the title four times. Pakistan has won twice, while the West Indies, South Africa, Bangladesh, and England have each won the Under-19 World Cup.