As a young cricketer looking to make a major impact on the world stage, there is perhaps no better tournament to do so than at the Under-19 Cricket World Cup. Not only does the tournament give cricket fans a glimpse of what they might expect to see in their national teams in years to come, it also gives national cricket associations of various countries a chance to showcase and examine the young talent their disposal.
Over the years, India has emerged as something of a powerhouse in this particular age group, winning four out of the 12 titles that have been up for grabs and becoming the most successful team in the tournament’s history.
With the 13th edition of the tournament set to be played this year in South Africa between January 17 to February 9, here’s a look back at the four previous U-19 titles defending champions India has lifted:
1. 2000 in Sri Lanka
India’s first success at the U-19 World Cup came at the third time of asking as they lifted the title in 2000, beating hosts Sri Lanka in Colombo in a low-scoring affair. A few members of this title-winning squad went on to represent India in various formats, including Reetinder Sodhi, Venugopal Rao, and Ajay Ratra. However, the two biggest finds from this tournament for India were (then) captain Mohammad Kaif and Yuvraj Singh, the same pair that would lead the senior side to a famous win in the Natwest Trophy final at Lords.
Yuvraj was actually named the player of the tournament, delivering a superb all-round performance by scoring 203 runs in eight matches as a strike rate of 103.57 and picking up 12 wickets to boot. It was a sign of things to come for the swashbuckling southpaw, as he would replicate the feat for the senior side in the 2011 World Cup.
2. 2008 in Malaysia
Even though India would have to wait eight years for their next World Cup triumph, it proved to be worth it, as this tournament saw the emergence of a certain Virat Kohli. The current Indian captain led his side to the title in Malaysia, triumphing in a rain-curtailed final over a South Africa side led by Wayne Parnell.
As it happens, this tournament gave cricket fans a glimpse of some batting superstars of the modern game, as Australia’s Steve Smith, England’s Joe Root, and New Zealand’s Kane Richardson also featured alongside other such stars as Ben Stokes, Jos Buttler, and Tim Southee! In fact, Kohli recently picked out the Kiwi skipper as the standout player in his opinion from that tournament. As for India, this was also the tournament where players like Ravindra Jadeja and Manish Pandey first started to catch the eye.
3. 2012 in Australia
After missing out on the title in 2010, India claimed its third U-19 World Cup in 2012 as an Unmukt Chand-led side defeated hosts Australia in the final. The skipper scored a match-winning 111 not out to lead from the front, as India triumphed by 6 wickets.
However, while Hanuma Vihari has won a few Test caps, Sandeep Sharma earned a few limited-overs call ups, not many players from this particular squad have managed to make the step up into the senior team. Other notable international players from other countries that we know today to have featured in this edition include Babar Azam, Travis Head, Soumya Sarkar, and Quinton de Kock among others.
4. 2018 in New Zealand
India’s most recent U-19 World Cup triumph came two years ago at Mount Maunganui in New Zealand, where, in a repeat of 2012 final, India handsomely beat Australia. In fact, India was largely untroubled throughout the tournament and lifted the trophy without breaking a sweat.
While it is still quite early to be expecting members of this squad to break into the national team, captain Prithvi Shaw and Shubman Gill have already made a few appearances between them while others have performed well in IPLs since. Big things are also expected of the exciting pace battery of Ishan Porel, Shivam Mavi, and Kamlesh Nagarkoti, who terrorized batsmen during their time in New Zealand.
