U-19 Asia Cup: India Set Sights on Revenge Against Pakistan in Final

Bulawayo, Jan 31: Five time champions India are set to face arch rivals Pakistan in a high stakes Super Six encounter of the ICC Men’s U-19 World Cup on Sunday, aiming to avenge their heavy Asia Cup final defeat. In December, India suffered a 191 run loss to Pakistan in the U-19 Asia Cup final in Dubai, despite having beaten the same opponents by 90 runs in the group stage earlier in the tournament.

Led by captain Ayush Mhatre, the Indian squad is eager to turn the tables and continue their dominant World Cup run. India has remained unbeaten so far, opening their campaign with a six-wicket win over the USA, followed by victories against Bangladesh and New Zealand. They recently thrashed hosts Zimbabwe by 204 runs in their first Super Six match on January 27.

No Handshake Policy Continues
In line with tensions following the Pahalgam terror attack and Operation Sindoor, the Indian U-19 team has maintained its “no handshake” policy against Pakistan, skipping the gesture in both Asia Cup matches against the same opponents.

Key Players in Form
Batsmen Abhigyan Kundu (183 runs in four matches) and Vaibhav Sooryavanshi (166 runs) have been consistent, each scoring two fifties, while Vihaan Malhotra impressed with an unbeaten 109 against Zimbabwe. On the bowling front, Henil Patel (10 wickets) and Udhav Mohan have led India’s attack, supported by skipper Mhatre’s three wickets and RS Amrish’s steady medium pace.

Pakistan’s Challenge
Pakistan bounced back from an opening loss to England, winning their subsequent group games against Scotland and Zimbabwe. They defeated New Zealand by eight wickets in their Super Six match on January 27. Opener Sameer Minhas, who scored a match-winning 172 in the Asia Cup final, has continued his fine form with scores of 74* and 76 in recent matches. Fast bowlers Ali Raza (12 wickets) and Abdul Subhan (10 wickets) will be key threats to India’s batting lineup.

Match Details

India Playing XI: Aaron George, Abhigyan Kundu, Harvansh Pangalia, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Vedant Trivedi, Ayush Mhatre (c), Vihaan Malhotra, RS Ambrish, Kanishk Chouhan, Khilan Patel, Deepesh Devendran, Henil Patel, Mohamed Enaan, Udhav Mohan, Kishan Singh

Pakistan Playing XI: Farhan Yousaf (c), Usman Khan, Ali Hassan Baloch, Hamza Zahoor, Huzaifa Ahsan, Mohammad Shayan, Sameer Minhas, Ahmed Hussain, Abdul Subhan, Ali Raza, Daniyal Ali Khan, Mohammad Sayyam, Momin Qamar, Niqab Shafiq, Umar Zaib

The match is scheduled to start at 1 pm IST.