Although the Indian Under-19 team won the five-match Youth ODI series against England 3-2, the team lost the final match by 7 wickets.
Sports News: The Indian Under-19 team suffered a 7-wicket defeat at the hands of the England Under-19 team in the fifth and final Youth ODI match. India won the toss and elected to bat first, scoring 210 runs for the loss of nine wickets in the allotted 50 overs. In response, the England team batted brilliantly, achieving the target in just 37.1 overs and winning the match with 113 balls remaining. However, despite losing this match, India won the five-match series 3-2, thanks to their three victories in the first four matches.
England's Explosive Batting
In the second innings, three batsmen from England scored impressive half-centuries, completely dismantling India's bowling attack. Opener Ben Mears played a stunning innings of 82 runs off 76 balls, including 11 fours and a six, while BJ Dawkins contributed a crucial 66 runs off 53 balls, hitting nine fours and three sixes. Captain Thomas Rave also played a brilliant finishing role, scoring an unbeaten 49 runs off just 37 balls, achieving the target with 113 balls to spare.
Indian Bowlers' Efforts Wasted
Among the Indian bowlers, only leg spinner Naman Pushpak made some impact. He took two wickets for 65 runs, while fast bowler Deepesh Devendran took one wicket for 34 runs in seven overs. The lack of consistency in the line and length of the other bowlers gave England the opportunity to play freely, which the English batsmen took full advantage of.
India's Batting Struggles Again
The Indian team, batting first after winning the toss, had a very disappointing start. Captain Ayush Mhatre and Vihan Malhotra returned to the pavilion after scoring only one run each. India's score was 9 runs for two wickets in the first three overs. From there, young batsman Vaibhav Suryavanshi struggled for a while and formed a partnership of 51 runs with Rahul Kumar.
Vaibhav scored 33 runs off 42 balls, including three fours and two sixes, but he failed to play a big innings in his aggressive style. Rahul Kumar also returned to the pavilion after scoring 21 runs. India's middle order kept faltering repeatedly, and the run rate kept slowing down.
Ambrish's Half-Century Innings
The biggest positive for the team was RS Ambrish's fighting innings of 66 runs. He held one end, hitting six fours off 81 balls, and took the team to a respectable score. Wicketkeeper Harsh Pangalia and Kanishk Chauhan also provided some relief by scoring 24-24 runs. But the failure to score runs quickly restricted India to only 210 runs.
