Harare: Unbeaten so far in the tournament, a confident and all-round India will be overwhelming favourites against Afghanistan in the semifinal of the ICC Under-19 World Cup here on Wednesday.
India are the most successful team in the history of the event, having annexed the title five times (2000, 2008, 2012, 2018, 2022), followed by Australia, who have won the trophy four times.
Come Wednesday, India will look to take one step forward towards a record sixth title.
India have had a great run in the tournament, having won all their five matches quite comfortably, including a 58-run win over arch-rivals Pakistan in the Super Six stage.
Afghanistan too has had a fairly good tournament, winning four out of their five games, their only loss coming against Sri Lanka by four wickets.
Going by form and overall composition, India will hold an edge over the Afghans in the knock-out game.
Wicket-keeper batter Abhigyan Kundu has been the star performer for India with the bat as the left-hander has so far amassed 199 runs from five games with two half centuries to his name.
Big-hitting opener Vaibhav Suryavanshi (196 runs in 5 matches with 2 fifties) too has been in good form but the team management would want him to convert his half-centuries into three-figure scores.
All-rounder Vihaan Malhotra (172 runs from 5 games) is the other Indian batter to look out for. He struck the lone century (109 not out) against Zimbabwe in group stages.
Skipper Ayush Mhatre has been consistent with the ball in hand, picking up six wickets with his off-break from five games but there is room for improvement on the batting front. He managed just 99 runs from five games with 53 being his highest.
Opener Aaron Geroge’s form, however, is a cause of concern for India as the right-handed batter could manage only 46 runs from three outings.
The Indian bowling is spearheaded by right-arm fast bowlers Henil Patel and RS Ambrish. Both the pacers have been phenomenal upfront, scalping 11 and wickets respectively.
The duo would look for able support from left-arm orthodox spinner Khilan Patel, who too has shone bright with eight scalps from five games.
Mhatre and Malhotra, who picked up five wickets so far in the tournament with his off-breaks besides scoring India’s lone century, will also look to contribute with the ball.
