It was drama galore in a low scoring thriller in the 2020 u.19 World Cup final between India and Bangladesh at the JB Marks Oval in Potchefstroom as Bangladesh manage to hold their nerves with a three wicket (D/L) win to claim the u,19 Cricket World Cup for the first time.
The heroes for Bangladesh were captain, Akbar Ali (42* off 76) and Parvez Emon (47 off 79) in a tight run chase on a brilliant day for cricket as fans packed the stadium to create an intense and festive final atmosphere.
After Bangladesh had bowled and fielded beautifully earlier on to restrict India to 177 all out, they and the massive crowd of expectant Bangladeshi supporters at the ground would’ve thought that they had an easy chase. Especially when openers Tanzid Hasan and Parvez Emon hit an opening stand of 50.
Enter Indian leg spin sensation and the top wicket taker of the tournament, Ravi Bishnoi (4/30) who took four quick wickets as Bangladesh’s middle order crumbled under his wizardry.
Bangladesh’s batsmen also played some rash shots when only singles were needed as India fought their way back into the match to leave Bangladesh 110/6 after 25 overs.
With Bangladesh captain, Ali at the crease, they could still gain victory as he kept a call head while his team mates seemed to lose the plot. Emon, who had retired hurt earlier, came back to the crease to stabilise the innings with his captain.
Together they drew closer to the target with a 41 run partnership. Then India’s hero with the bat earlier in the day, got the crucial wicket of Emon for 47 caught at cover by Akash Singh.
Bangladesh now needed 35 runs with 3 wickets in hand. To further the stress, rain clouds also started to form above the ground as the dreaded Duckworth/Lewis equation was also brought into play.
It became tenser each ball as Bangladesh crawled to the target with each passing over. Ali nudged the ball into gaps, as they inched closer with the Bangladeshi fans cheering on each run. The rain eventually came and with that ended India’s chances for good. Bangladesh needed 7 runs after the short rain interval and knocked off the winning runs in the drizzle to the jubilation of players, coaches and fans.
Earlier on, India had the tournament’s top run scorer, Yashasvi Jaiswal, to thank as his 88 was the only highlight in a sombre batting display, atypical of their previous innings in the tournament. Bangladesh pacers, Shoriful Islam (2/31), and Avishek Das (3/40) were terrific as they restricted India to a low score. India has made it 103/2 but lost their last 8 wickets for only 74 runs as the Bangladeshi Tigers roared back.
India will also look at the amount of extras (33) they conceded that eventually eased Bangladesh’s run chase.
All in all, it was an historic day for Bangladesh cricket as they lifted their first major international cricketing title in the soothing drizzle. Safe to say not a dry eye was left on the field.
Photos: Wouter Pienaar
Photos: Wouter Pienaar
