Australia dominated all three areas of the pitch to defeat India by 79 runs in the ICC U19 Men’s Cricket World Cup 2024 final in Benoni. Hugh Weibgen made the right decision by batting first in Benoni. Charlie Anderson replaced Tom Campbell for Australia. India remained unaltered. Australia scored 253/7 at the end of the first innings. This was the highest score ever recorded in an U19 World Cup final. Harjas Singh led the way with 55 points, while Weibgen, Harry Dixon, and Ollie Peak all added key 40s. Raj Limbani starred for India, scoring 3/38.
India’s chase got off to a bad start, as they lost four batters in the first 20 overs. Musheer Khan, Uday Saharan, and Sachin Dhas, the team’s top three run scorers, were among those dismissed. Australia kept chipping away, picking up four more wickets between overs 21 and 32. Despite Abhishek Murugan’s late push, Australia won easily, sealing the game in the 44th over.
India were startled early in their pursuit when Arshin Kulkarni nicked a catch behind the wicket. Adarsh Singh and Musheer Khan then moved carefully. Only two fours came in the opening Powerplay. Musheer began playing more daring strokes after the first ten overs. However, he scored 22 runs off a Mahli Beardman delivery. Beardman claimed another major scalp when he removed India captain Uday Saharan for 8. The hitter attempted to force the ball past offside, but his opposite number, Weibgen, was at the backward point. India’s hopes were further dashed when Sachin Dhas (8) edged one behind the wicket from Raf MacMillan.
Priyanshu Moliya and Aravelly Avanish were quickly dismissed, adding little to the total. When Beardman discharged Adarsh Singh, who battled valiantly at 47, the writing was on the wall for India. Abhishek Murugan scored a spirited 42, but it was too late for his team.
While batting for Australia, Harry Dixon got off to an aggressive start, scoring 15 runs off Naman Tiwari’s first over. However, Raj Limbani got a swerve in and castled his partner Sam Konstas in the third over. India quickly switched to spin and managed to keep the scoring down in the first Powerplay.