U19 Asia Cup: India crush Bangladesh, advance to the final

SHARJAH: Indian bowlers partnered strongly to aid their side defeat Bangladesh by 112 runs to advance into the Under 19 Asia Cup Final, here on Thursday.

Indian bowlers annihilated Bangladesh’s batting line-up; dismissing the side for a paltry 140 runs while chasing 243 in the second Semi-final of the ongoing tournament.

Set to chase 243, the Tigers’ batter struggled throughout the innings, none of their batters could able to make a significant impact with the bat, and the side, in the end, bowled out for 140. Bangladesh’s opener – Tahfijul Islam scored 26, followed by their top-scorer, Ariful Islam, who scored a valiant 42.

For the men in blue, Rajvardhan Hangargekar, Ravi Kumar, Raj Bawa, and Vicky Ostwal each bagged two wickets. Nishant Sindhu and Kaushal Tambe, on the other hand, shared one wicket apiece.

Batting first, Indian openers provided an average start to the team; adding 23-runs for the first wicket before Angkrish Raghuvanshi, departed after scoring 16. Soon after, Harnoor Singh also walked back to the pavilion, the batter managed to score 15.

The side kept losing wickets at one end, but, Shaik Rashid stood firm at the other end. Rashid fought hard and kept the scoreboard ticking single-handedly. The batter scored an unbeaten 90 off 108 balls; smashing three boundaries and a six.

With a handy cameo down the order from Ostwal of 28. India finished with 243/8 in the allotted 50 overs. The batter faced just 18 balls and smoked three boundaries.

For the Tigers, Rakibul Hassan starred; picking three wickets, while Ariful, SM Meherob, Naimur Rohman, and Tanzim Hasan Sakib shared one wicket apiece.

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