Pakistan gift-wrap U19 World Cup semifinal spot to India; lose battle as well as war in a brain fade for the ages

Pakistan showed no intention of going after the U19 World Cup semi-final spot, and in the end, India won the battle and the war.

And just like that, Pakistan gifted India the semi-final spot of the U19 World Cup 2026. The team led by Farhan Yousuf prioritised winning the last Super 6s match over having a crack at sealing a place in the knockouts. When the batters came out, Pakistan knew the task at hand. The broadcasters kept reminding the same. The target of 253 was to be achieved in 33.3 overs if Pakistan wanted to better India's net run rate and send the latter packing, finalising their qualification. However, there was no intent at all as Hamza Zahoor (42), Usman Khan (66), and the skipper Yousuf (38) batted as if they were just content with somehow being able to get over the line.

The India U19 team cruised home against Pakistan by 58 runs (AFP)

The tactics were so baffling that even the commentators were unable to make head or tail of Pakistan's approach, as they kept chasing ones and twos even with the asking rate soaring past 11. What was even more befuddling was that the Pakistan support staff, spearheaded by mentor Sarfaraz Ahmed, kept sending messages to the middle, but the batters refused to show any willingness to go for the big sixes. When the 27-over mark was reached in the second innings, Pakistan had played 101 dot balls. Make whatever you will of it.

When Pakistan were going at a snail's pace, former India batter Rohan Gavaskar was forced to say that the side was clearly chasing a win rather than a semi-final place. “It's quite clear Pakistan are trying to win, and not qualify for the semis,” Gavaskar said on air.

On the other hand, another commentator lambasted the Pakistan tactics, saying, “The thing that I am unable to comprehend is when they started this run chase, that qualification was well within their grasp. They all have the ability to display their strokeplay. They all can play attacking cricket. We have seen the glimpses.”

Pakistan's tactics were so absurd that India captain Mhatre decided to bring himself into the attack, and then struck with his first delivery, dismissing Ahmed Hussain for 2. However, in the end, Pakistan couldn't even win the match, as the team self-imploded, losing by 58 runs. For India, Mhatre and Khilan Patel scalped three wickets each. The Boys in Blue will now take on Afghanistan in the semi-final on Wednesday, February 4.

Pakistan batters undo the job of the bowlers

After electing to bowl, Pakistan did a good job of restricting India to just 252. The Indian camp wasn't allowed to free its arms, and at one stage, it seemed like Mhatre and team wouldn't even breach 300. In the end, the cameos played by Kanishk Chouhan (35), RS Ambrish (29) and Khilan Patel (21) took India past the 250-run mark.

For India, Vedant Trivedi top-scored with a knock of 68. For Pakistan, Abdul Subhan scalped three wickets while Mohammad Sayyam returned with two. India got off to a good start after being asked to bat, as Vaibhav Suryavanshi and Aaron George put on 47 runs. However, India lost three wickets against the run of play, and Pakistan immediately got the upper hand. The latter kept choking the run flow, and the wickets kept coming.

When Pakistan's chase got underway, one expected the side to come out all guns blazing, firing on all cylinders. But very soon, it became clear they were chasing a win, not the semis. No one would have batted an eyelid had Pakistan at least gone for it, but seeing the team showing zero enthusiasm made the tactics all the more questionable.