In the ongoing U-19 World Cup, India has been placed with WI, SA and Papua New Guniea. With a thumping 195 run victory over PNG, that saw Inida’s NRR zoom to +3.9, India took on SA.
By the time I turned on the TV, SA had struggled to 149. This was mainly due to some inspired bowling from left-arm pacer Pradeep Sangwan who took a 5-for.
Indian run chase was slow with Kohli and Srivastava playing a Dravid-esque innings, valuable but very slow! Their partnership for the 2nd wicket ensured that SA could not conjure a miracle. India ultimately won with 6 wickets taking a grueling 42 overs to reach the target.
Some things i noticed about the match which i saw in between the Ind-Sri match and later in the highlights were:
The seemingly lack of bounce for Indian spinners!
The excellent fielding from SA!
Wicket-keepers standing up to the stumps against the medium pacers, a new emerging trend all round.
The endless chatter from the SA wicketkeeper that really challenged the commentators!
But overall it has been a good start to India in the competition with all departments clicking. Hopefully they will carry on…
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