India vs England Highlights, U19 World Cup 2022: India win historic fifth title, beat ENG by four wickets

Antigua witnessed a little bit of rain yesterday but rain isn't expected to halt the final. The pitch is hard as a rock, favourable for batters. Both teams are well-equipped with quality batters. Expect a big total here!

India U19: Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Harnoor Singh, Shaik Rasheed, Yash Dhull(c), Nishant Sindhu, Rajvardhan Hangargekar, Dinesh Bana(w), Kaushal Tambe, Raj Bawa, Vicky Ostwal, Ravi Kumar

England U19: George Thomas, Jacob Bethell, Tom Prest(c), James Rew, William Luxton, George Bell, Rehan Ahmed, Alex Horton(w), James Sales, Thomas Aspinwall, Joshua Boyden

"We also wanted to bat first. We take it game by game and we play with a positive mindset. Change of venue doesn't bother us. No changes in the playing eleven for us," says IND captain Yash Dhull.

"We will have a bat first, pitch looks a good one and obviously scorecard pressure, chasing in a finals is always hard. To put 230 against them (Afghanistan) and then defend how we did gives us great confidence going into this game. We are playing the same team," says ENG skipper Tom Prest.

England U19 have won the toss and have opted to bat

Who can forget Rajvardhan Hangargekar's six-hitting spree versus Ireland? Flaunting his batting prowess, he whacked 39* off 17 in an innings laced with one four and five maximums. He's got five wickets to his name so far, and Hangargekar can certainly leave a mark in the final with his comprehensive show.

"He gave us his best wishes as the team is doing well. So his words will give us confidence. When a senior player speaks with the team, the team morale gets a boost," said Dhull on how Kohli passed on advice about handling the big day.

One of the biggest strengths of India throughout the tournament has been the depth in their squad. We could perhaps see another match-winning performance today. Just minutes away from the toss! Mohammad Kaif, Virat Kohli, Unmukt Chand, Prithvi Shaw… Yash Dhull?

England skipper Tom Prest led from the front with 292 runs at an average of 73. Another big score from the captain and England will finally end their U-19 World Cup title drought. 

Tom Prest's numbers so far:

Matches: 5

Runs: 292

Average: 73.00

Strike rate: 103.91

Angkrish Raghuvanshi is the top scorer for India with a ton and a half-century in five games. He had hit 144 against Uganda to help India post 405 for five. Raj Bawa had also played a record-breaking 162 knock.

Angkrish Raghuvanshi's numbers so far:

Matches: 5

Runs: 278

Highest score: 144

Average: 55.60

Vicky Ostwal has currently got 12 wickets to his name and needs just five more to become the joint-leading wicket-taker of the tournament. He had picked a five-wicket haul against South Africa in the opener.

Vicky Ostwal's bowling show:

Matches: 6

Wickets: 12

Average: 10.75

Best figures: 5/28

Skipper Yash Dhull played a superlative 110-run knock in the semi-final against Australia, paving way for the team's 96-run win. Apart from his batting prowess, the Indian captain has been exceptional with his field placements and bowling changes. Is one more century incoming?

Yash Dhull's performance so far:

Matches: 3

Runs: 212

Strike rate: 89.83

The Indian colts also got a chance to interact with Virat Kohli two days before the final. The entire team gathered over a Zoom call, also attended by India Under-19 coach Hrishikesh Kanitkar.

READ MORE: Virat Kohli interacts with India's Under-19 cricketers over Zoom call ahead of all-important World Cup final

"Firstly, I would like to wish them the best for the finals. They have played some solid cricket to reach the finals, so I wish them the very best. The effort they put in, I was in Bengaluru with them and they were practicing really hard," said India's white-ball skipper Rohit in the presser.

While India are looking to add another trophy to their cabinet, England are aiming to end their trophy drought, having won the title back in 1998. England progressed into the final after defeating Afghanistan by 15 runs in a tense semi-final.

India and England have met each other 49 times in U19 ODIs and eight of them were played in a U19 World Cup campaign.

HEAD-TO-HEAD RECORD OVERALL:

Matches: 49

India win: 37

England win: 11

India's impressive track record in the tournament (four-time champions, seven-time finalists) highlights the structure of Indian cricket and the depth of its talent pool. Here's a brief history of Team India’s record in seven finals:

2000 U19 World Cup final - beat Sri Lanka by 6 wickets

2006 U19 World Cup final - lost to Pakistan by 38 runs

2008 U19 World Cup - beat South Africa by 12 runs via D/L method

2012 U19 World Cup final - beat Australia by 6 wickets

2016 U19 World Cup - lost to West Indies by 5 wickets

2018 U19 World Cup - beat Australia by 8 wickets

2020 U19 World Cup - lost to Bangladesh by 3 wickets

Semi-final - The Yash Dhull-Shaik Rasheed duo put up an impressive display with the bat in the semi-final against Australia. The pair put on the second biggest partnership of the tournament, adding 204 runs for the third wicket. In response to India's 290, Australia never got going. Vicky Ostwal picked three to bowl out the opposition for just 194.

Quarter-final: Ravi Kumar picked up three wickets as Bangladesh were restricted to just 111 runs. Vicky Ostwal also added two to his name. The Indian team chased the modest total in just 30.5 overs to storm into the semis!

Match 3 - IND U19 vs UGA U19: In a lop-sided contest, Raja Bawa notched up a record-breaking 162, breaking Shikhar Dhawan’s record for the highest individual score by an Indian batter at the U 19 World Cup. India posted 405 and Uganda, in reply, bundled out for just 79 as the IND colts won by a record margin of 326 runs!

Match 2 - IND U19 vs IRE U19: Harnoor Singh & Angrish Raghuvanshi hit half-centuries, helping India post an intimidating 307 total. In response, Ireland faltered to post just 133 on the board. India clinched the game by a huge margin of 174 runs.

Match 1 - IND U19 vs SA U19: The Indian boys have had their moment in the sun in the Caribbean. They defeated South Africa by 45 runs in the opener with skipper Yash Dhull scoring a brilliant 82! He will be eyeing another match-defining knock today.

After a stellar run in the tournament, the Indian colts are staring at the final hurdle. India had a flawless run to the final despite being hit by Covid-19, which led to skipper Yash Dhull and his deputy Shaik Rasheed missing a couple of league fixtures. They defeated Australia in the semis to march into the finals!