In an absolute cracker of a match, Pakistan beat England by three wickets to enter the final of the Under-19 World Cup on Monday. Chasing England’s 204 for seven, Pakistan turned the match around after losing seven wickets for 142 runs.
The heroes for Pakistan were Zafar Gohar (37 not out), who was named man-of-the-match, and Amad Butt (27 not out)and their unbeaten 63-run stand for the eighth wicket.
Gohar kept his nerve and guided Butt too, as Pakistan snatched an improbable win.
India beats Sri Lanka India salvaged some pride as it comfortably beat its Sri Lankan counterparts by 76 runs in a fifth-place semifinal play-off match.
In the absence of skipper Vijay Zol, who was banned for breaching ICC’s Code of Conduct, the Sanju Vishwanadh-led side piled up 291 for seven in the stipulated 50 overs at the ICC Cricket Academy ground in Dubai.
In reply, Sri Lanka was dismissed for 215 in 48.1 overs as Deepak Hooda starred with an all-round performance of unbeaten 76 off 57 balls with the bat and three for 31 in 10 overs with his off-breaks.
Shreyas Iyer (59) and Samson (40) also made useful contributions.
Earlier, Akhil Herwadkar (23) and Ankush Bains (29) added 57 runs for the opening stand, while Iyer and Samson added 87 runs for the third wicket stand.
The scores:
Semifinal: England 204 for seven in 50 overs (Ryan Higgins 52, Will Rhodes 76 n.o.) lost to Pakistan 205 for seven in 49.1 overs (Saud Shakeel 45, Ameer Hamza 35, Zafar Gohar 37 n.o.).
Fifth-place play-off: India 291 for seven in 50 overs (Deepak Hooda 76 n.o., Shreyash Iyer 59) bt Sri Lanka 215 in 48.1 overs (Sadeera Samarawickrama 58, Deepak Hooda three for 31).
