Well fought boys! Ishant Sharma, Pragyan Ojha laud India U19 team post World Cup defeat

Indian pacer Ishant Sharma and former India spinner Pragyan Ojha lauded India’s Under 19 team after their U19 World Cup 2024 final defeat against Australia Under 19. Ishant Sharma and Pragyan Ojha took to X (formerly Twitter) to heap praises on the India Under 19 team for their outstanding performance in the tournament.

India U19 team to lost Australia U19 Team in the Under19 World Cup 2024. They failed to chase down a 254-run target set by the junior Australian team. With 3 wicket hauls by Mahli Beardman and Raf MacMillan, the Australian team managed to outplay the Indian team by 79 runs.

A total of 16 teams were part of the Under 19 World Cup 2024. India U19 outplayed South Africa by 2 wickets in the semi-final to grab a place in the final. However, they could not crush Australia in the climax clash. Australia demolished Pakistan by 1 wicket in the semi-final to reach the final.

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Ishant Sharma hails U-19 Team

Veteran Indian pacer Ishant Sharma took to X to heap praises on the India U19 team post the final. The right-arm pacer said that the junior team played like champions.

“Our U19 team played like champions, and one game doesn’t define the way they played this tournament. It wasn’t our day, but we’re proud of their spirited journey throughout the tournament. Keep your heads up, boys! We’ll come back stronger! #BleedBlue #FutureStars,” Ishant Sharma wrote on X. Look at his tweet below.

Our U19 team played like champions, and one game doesn’t define the way they played this tournament.

It wasn't our day, but we're proud of their spirited journey throughout the tournament.

Keep your heads up, boys! We'll come back stronger! #BleedBlue #FutureStars pic.twitter.com/W370lwHD8e

— Ishant Sharma (@ImIshant) February 11, 2024

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Well-fought boys: Pragyan Ojha praises junior team

Former Indian spinner Pragran Ojha also praised the boys for their fabulous fight during the tournament.

“Well fought boys! Your effort has paved the way for an exciting journey. Keep going strong – the rewards will be totally worth it! #INDvsAUSfinal #U19WorldCup,” Pragran Ojha posted on ‘X’. Have a look at his tweet below.

Well fought boys! Your effort has paved the way for an exciting journey. Keep going strong – the rewards will be totally worth it! #INDvsAUSfinal #U19WorldCup

— Pragyan Ojha (@pragyanojha) February 11, 2024

The Indian team lost 5 key batters for single-digits

Notably, the India U19 vs Australia U19 final was almost a one-sided encounter. Australia won the toss and opted to bat first. They lost Sam Konstas for a duck. However, his partner Harry Dixon added 42 runs with the bat. Later, captain Hugh Weibgen also hit 48 runs.

Harjas Singh (55) and Oliver Peake (46*) later followed up their start with brilliant innings. The Aussies reached a total of 253-7 in 50 overs. Raj Limbani hunted 3 wickets for India while Naman Tiwari got 2 scalps.

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While the chase looked like an easy affair, the Australian team made a comeback with their wonderful bowling attack. Off-spinner Raf MacMillan and pacer Mahli Beardman dismantled India’s top order, restricting them to 91-6 at one stage.

Key batters like Arshin Kulkarni, Uday Saharan, Sachin Dhas, Priyanshu Moliya, and Aravelly Avanish got out for single digits. Opener Adarsh Singh and lower-order Murugan Abhishek were the only batters to hit good decent knocks of 47 and 42. From 91-6 in 25 overs, India crawled to 174 in the 44th over, when they lost their last wicket.