India’s junior team ended the year on a high after clinching the Under-19 Asia Cup defeating Sri Lanka by 34 runs in Colombo on Friday.
The Indian colts opted to bat first after winning the toss and scored 273/8 in 50 overs. Himanshu Rana top-scored with 71 runs, with Shubman Gill being the second-highest run-getter with 70.
In their chase, Sri Lanka took the score past 100 runs with just one wicket down.
Rahul Dravid’s crucial advice
Skipper Abhishek Sharma though got the break through, after a vital tip from coach Rahul Dravid.
During the drinks break, Dravid is reported to have instructed Abhishek to introduce himself in the attack. “Rahul sir was rightly called the “Wall”. He has a tremendous cricketing brain. His pat after the final was a gift. He doesn’t express much,” Abhishek said after the match.
Sharma finished with figures of 4 for 37 and debutant Rahul Chahar’s 3 for 22 however skittled the Lankan hopes as they were all out in 48.4 overs for 239 runs.
He was selected as the player of the match, while Rana was chosen as the player of the series.
They had reached the final undefeated. India opened the campaign with a win over Malaysia by 235 runs in their Group A tie. They later beat Nepal six wickets followed by a win over eventual finalists Sri Lanka with four wickets to spare.
They had a comfortable win in the semi-final as well, where they outclassed Afghanistan by a 77-run margin to progress to the final.
