The top two teams from each Super Six group will advance to the main event’s semifinals. India, the tournament frontrunner, is yet to taste defeat in the competition, when it faces Nepal.
India will be hoping to make a dramatic entrance into the semifinals of the ICC Under-19 World Cup when it meets a struggling Nepal in its last Group 1 Super Six encounter on Friday.
The top two teams from each of the two Super Six groups will advance to the semifinals of the premier event.
Pakistan (+1.06) is close behind with six points, but India (+3.32) takes the top spot due to a higher net run rate.
The tournament favourite, led by Uday Saharan, is yet to lose a game in the competition, and Nepal is unlikely to test this formidable team.
The stats confirm India’s dominance. It leads Group 1 with an undefeated record and six points, while Nepal has yet to win.Musheer Khan, the younger brother of successful Mumbai batsman Sarfaraz, leads the batting table with 325 runs at an average of over 81, including two hundreds. His most recent blitz came against New Zealand on January 30.
Musheer’s 131 off 126 balls was the highlight of India’s 214-run win over New Zealand in its first Super Six match.
Saumy Kumar Pandey then wrecked havoc on New Zealand’s batting lineup, taking four wickets in all.
Now, Ubaid Shah of Pakistan and Kwena Maphaka of South Africa are tied for first place in the bowling standings with the left-arm spinner (12 wickets).
Beyond those two studs, though, India’s roster is deeper.
At different points throughout the match, captain Saharan, wicketkeeper batsman Aravalli Avanish, and dynamic all-rounder Arshin Kulkarni have also left their mark.
The youthful players are keen to end their Super Six matches on a positive note and will be confident as they head to Benoni for the final four fixture.
After struggling to score runs consistently, opener Adarsh Singh may have gained a lot of confidence after scoring 52 against New Zealand, his second fifty in this tournament.
Naman Tiwary, a left-arm bowler who has successfully controlled run-flow in the Power Play, might be a bothersome presence for Nepal’s top-order batsmen.
It would be foolish, though, to write off Nepal after the team from the foothills of the Himalayas defeated Afghanistan in a dramatic match in the preliminary round. They possess the ability to surprise the powerful on their day.
The two main players in that victory, medium pacer Akash Chand (5/34) and captain Dev Khanal (58), will want to leave their mark once more. India, on the other hand, will aim to go through the semifinals safely and without any catastrophe.
