Chasing a record fourth World Cup title, this Indian side knows no fear
The India U-19 side has established a level of dominance that gives them the X-factor heading into the final against Australia in Mount Maunganui. Nagarkoti has touched close to 150 kmph, while the likes of Porel and Mavi have regularly touched close to 140 kmph. Three bowlers bowling over 85 mph, combined with Gill, Shaw and Kalra, who average in the range of 50-170, in addition to excellent fielding make this Indian team potent.
If one looks at the performances of the 2017-18 side in this World Cup, there are similarities with the sides of 2000, 2008 and 2012. In each of these editions, the trend for India’s success revolved around consistent performances from bowlers and batsmen.
2000 :YUVRAJ SINGH
India’s maiden U-19 World Cup win was primarily due to Yuvraj Singh, who smashed 203 runs at an average of 33 and took 12 wickets. He was aided by splendid batting from Ravneet Ricky, who was the leading run-getter for India with 340 runs at the top at an average of 42.5. Yuvraj was complemented by Manish Sharma who also averaged 42.8. Apart from batsmen, Shalabh Srivastava and Anup Dave took 14 and 13 wickets respectively.
2008: VIRAT KOHLI
The edition in Malaysia saw India going undefeated in the tournament, thanks to Virat Kohli’s consistency, backed up by Tanmay Srivastava (252) and Taruwar Kohli (218) at the top and middle order. The bowling effort saw Siddarth Kaul, Iqbal Abdulla and Ravindra Jadeja taking 10 wickets apiece. It was the bowlers who gave India the title.
2012: UNMUKT CHAND
The common factor in 2000 and 2008 was that India’s march to the title was undefeated. In 2012, the team arrived on the back of winning four out of five series.
After starting off with a loss against the West Indies, India bounced back thanks Ravikant Singh and Sandeep Sharma’s swing bowling and accuracy which fetched them 12 wickets. In the final, captain Unmukt Chand slammed a ton as India defeated Australia to win the title for the third time.