A 14-year-old batting sensation who is a household name, his 18-year-old opening partner who is seen as the next big batsman from Mumbai, a solid No.3, all-rounders and a well-rounded bowling unit makes India’s Under-19 World Cup team the one to beat. The ICC tournament starts on Thursday in Zimbabwe and Namibia and going by the talent in their ranks, the recent results and their reputation as five-time winners, India not making the final will be seen as a disappointment for their fans.
Since Yuvraj Singh emerged as the player of the tournament of the junior World Cup in 2000, which India won under the captaincy of Mohammad Kaif, to Virat Kohli whose team lifted the trophy for the second time, the junior World Cup is seen as a platform to launch a career if one is talented enough to graduate to the senior level.
The results of this team since September 2024 speak for themselves. At home, they first blanked Australia. In the middle of last year, when the core group was finalised, they beat England away for a 3-2 series win. And more importantly last September-October they whitewashed Australia in away conditions, winning the one-dayers 3-0 and the four-day matches with 2-0 scoreline which highlighted their dominance. If the seaming conditions in the UK tested them to a large extent, the fast and bouncy conditions at Ian Healy Oval in Brisbane didn’t intimidate them one bit.
The likes of Vaibhav Suryavanshi and Ayush Mhatre, the two openers, have the potential to fill big shoes as and when the time comes so do some of the others in the squad.
Suryavanshi, who is just 14 years old, is capable of winning matches inside the first powerplay single-handedly. More than the runs he has been making at a rapid pace, what stands out is his natural ability to hit sixes, which is unseen at this level. In the Asia Cup, he hit 20 sixes in five matches and scored at a strike-rate of 182.51. His opening partner, the captain Mhatre prefers to play shots and is known to be aggressive as well. This duo would have a psychological edge even before they take strike. But there is downside to it as well, as was evident in the Asia Cup final against Pakistan when chasing 348 they appeared to bat only in top gear and paid the price.
They have earned a reputation by putting bowling attacks to the sword. Clinton Peake, the father of Australia Under-19 captain Oliver Peake, had this to say. “I know it is going to be real hard against Indian boys. They have hammered us every time. Those boys, for me, with all the exposure are the team to beat.” Australia have four Under-19 World Cup titles, one less than India.
It is a sentiment that many coaches and commentators would attest.
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Though all eyes were on Suryavanshi and Mhatre, this is a team that is so rounded and has multiple match-winners. Beyond the openers, slotted at No.3 is Hyderabad’s Aaron George. Though he wasn’t in the initial squad, strong performances in the domestic circuit where he led his team to the title, put him in the squad. A technically gifted batsman, he has the style that batsmen from Hyderabad carry and the skills to be the middle-order enforcer.
With Vihaan Malhotra, Vedant Trivedi, Abhigyan Kundu to follow — all capable of big hits— this team isn’t short on firepower. If they can find a middle-path — between attack and defence — this team has the potential to chase huge targets as well as set them.
From the team that featured in the Asia Cup, the arrival of all-rounder RS Ambrish should provide India the balance. He was the missing link in the Asia Cup. A seamer who can bowl in mid 130s, he plays as a top-order batsman in his state team, and that he is slotted at No.7 speaks of India’s depth. Assisting him will be the two spin-bowling all-rounders — Kanishk Chouhan who can bowl off-breaks and left-armer Khilan Patel.
Even with the ball, their resources are covered. For raw pace, they have Deepesh Devendran and to make full use of the new ball, there is Henil Patel and the two left-arm seamers Udhav Mohan and Kishan Singh to go with the leg-spinner Mohamed Enaan. If this team holds their nerves and plays sensibly, they should reach the final.
