U19 World Cup: Riding on Uday Saharan, Sachin Dhas tons India punch semifinal berth after big win over Nepal

Defending champions India have booked their place in the semifinals of the ongoing U19 World Cup in South Africa after they dismantled Nepal in a one-sided contest in Bloemfontein.

Captain Uday Saharan (100) and Sachin Dhas (116) were the heroes of the match for India as they registered an emphatic 132-run win. Riding on the tons from the Indian duo, the Boys in Blue will now await for results of Saturday’s matches to determine their opponent in the semifinal.

India thrash Nepal

In the final Super-Six contest, India were at their fluent best with both bat and ball as they secured a comprehensive win. Saumy Pandey scalped three wickets while Arshin Kulkarni ended with figures of 18/2 in his four overs. There were wickets for Raj Limbani and Murugan Abhishek as they helped India restrict Nepal to a mere 165/9 total.

Dev Khanal was the top scorer with 26 while Arjun Kumal (26) and Deepak Bohara (22) were the only other batters to make an impact on the scoreboard.

Batting first after winning the toss, India scored 297/5 in their 50 overs as Saharan and Dhas were at their fluent best. The duo stitched a partnership of 215 runs for the fourth wicket after India struggled with an early fall of wickets. Gulsan Jha was the architect-in-chief of the Indian downfall after he had the record champions at 62/3 in 14 overs. Adarsh Singh (21), Arshin Kulkarni (21) and Priyanshu Moliya (19) got good starts but did not convert it into big innings.