Captain Lakshya Raichandani led from the front with a 93 as India defeated Afghanistan by eight wickets in the Under-19 Asia Cup semifinal at Al Amerat, Oman, on Thursday. The win set up a final clash against Pakistan on Sunday.
India made light work of the 228-run target, reaching 230 for two in just 36.5 overs. The Indian bowlers, led by Ishan Sood, had earlier restricted Afghanistan to 227 for eight.
Pakistan had booked their place in the final with a nine-wicket win over Bangladesh. They had also beaten India in the group stage of the tournament.
Raichandani leads India’s chase
Raichandani was hardly troubled by the Afghanistan bowlers, who have had a good run in the tournament. The Indian captain looked comfortable at the crease and scored at a strike rate of over 100 without appearing to be in a hurry.
His first fifty came off just 39 balls. A powerful pull off Mohammad Ali took him to 49 before he picked up a single off the next delivery to reach the half-century.
Raichandani then slowed down a little but continued to keep the scoreboard moving. He added 117 runs for the opening wicket with Aaryavir Sehwag (51) in 17 overs before putting on another 77 with V K Vineeth (57 not out).
The Indian captain played some fine pull shots and drives down the ground to keep the chase on track. Vineeth also looked in good touch and brought up his fifty off 61 balls.
Vineeth finished the match in style, hitting Noor Ali for a four and a six off successive deliveries.
Sehwag, Vineeth also contribute
Raichandani’s innings ended in an unexpected manner when he tried to hit off-spinner Sohail Khan over extra cover. He failed to get underneath the ball and ended up offering a catch to Mohammad Ali, who completed a fine diving effort. By then, however, India were already close to the target.
Sehwag also played his part in the chase, hitting three sixes to put the Afghanistan bowlers under pressure. His fourth six, a straight hit off pacer Noor Ali, took him to a 56-ball fifty.
But the opener was dismissed off the very next delivery. Sehwag attempted a pull shot but was beaten by the extra bounce, with Faridullah Ihsas completing the catch at cover.
Ishan Sood leads India’s bowling effort
Earlier, Ishan Sood picked up three wickets for 43 runs as India restricted Afghanistan to 227 for eight.
The Indian spinners also kept the Afghanistan batters in check during the middle overs, preventing them from building momentum.
Wicketkeeper-batter Noman Salarzai and Shah Faisal Rahimi scored 51 runs each, but neither could accelerate the innings enough to take Afghanistan to a bigger total.
India will now face Pakistan in Sunday’s final, with the opportunity to avenge their group-stage defeat.
