PRE MATCH ANALYSIS
Follow UsThe Indian Under-19 team’s predicament is a tough one. They are without five of their key players because of covid-19 for ten days with no guarantees of them playing for the remainder of the tournament given the mandatory quarantine, complications of recovering from the virus and gaining match fitness.
Adding to the anxiety is that their reserves bench of five players did not travel to the Caribbean and even if they do, they will have to undergo hard quarantine for five days and then test negative for covid to be cleared to play.
Whatever the BCCI's contingency plans might be, the team in Tarouba, Trindad and Tobago will have make do with 12 players at their disposal against Uganda on Saturday. Despite all the hurdles, the Indian colts have proved to be a tough unit whenever they took to the field. Even without captain Yash Dhull and his deputy Shaik Rasheed, they mowed down Ireland by 172 runs to book a spot in the quarterfinals.
India stocked with talent
India are among five sides to claim all the opposition wickets in the tournament with a superb economy of 3.8. They have a total of nine capable bowlers out of the 12 which is an intimidating factor for any opposition. The two frontline pacers Ravi Kumar and Rajvardhan Hangargekar are very capable with the new ball while the spinners Vicky Otswal, Kaushal Tambe and stand-in skipper Nishant Sindhu have carried on their excellent form from the trophy-winning U-19 Asia Cup campaign. Raj Bawa, India’s top wicket-taker in that tournament, has been excellent with both bat and ball in the World Cup scoring 55 runs and claiming four wickets.
After stuttering in the first game against South Africa, India’s top order put its foot down in the game against Ireland. With no Rasheed at No.3 and Yash Dhull at No.4, openers Angkrish Raghuvanshi and Harnoor Singh put in a stand that sapped the energy out of Irish bowlers. Sindhu and Bawa covered up for Rasheed and Dhull brilliantly by anchoring the middle order. In terms of depth, the Indian XI is more than the sum of its parts. With no scope for a change or a substitution, the group will be tested to their limits in terms of big tournament mentality.
Indian batters will have to earn runs
Uganda, meanwhile, have looked the weakest of the Group B teams, which could be mostly down to inexperience playing at the top level. Until their first warm-up match against Sri Lanka on January 12, the Ugandans haven’t played a match since the African World Cup Qualifier tournament in October, 2021. Also, this is their first U-19 World Cup since 2006 and have won only two from their 14 matches across three editions.
In terms of bowling efforts, Uganda have had middling results despite picking up 18 off the 20 possible wickets. They bowled at an economy of 4.7 and picked up a wicket every 33.3 balls and 26 runs. However, they have conceded just four sixes and 31 boundaries, which is the least boundary percentage of 31.69 in the entire tournament. If India bat first like they did in the previous two games, they will have to earn it mostly by running between the wickets.
Uganda’s batting has been their weakest link as they failed to chase 230-plus scores twice. Besides No.3 Isaac Ategeka’s brief resistance in both games, the top four were dismissed cheaply. Against the bowling might of India, they will need a big contribution from their top order.
However, the onus will be on talented individuals Juma Miyaji and skipper Pascal Murungi, who have flexed their allround prowess. The duo who bat lower down the order, fought back in the chase of 232 against Ireland albeit in a losing cause and have picked up five wickets each in the two World Cup matches so far.
Stakes of the pandemic
Had this match been played in normal time, it would’ve been a dead rubber. But the scenarios created by the pandemic have increased the stakes for India. They have been highly resilient and will look to make light work of Uganda which will set up a replay of last edition’s final with holders Bangladesh in the quarterfinal. But stranger things have happened in cricket.
The four-time champions would likely prefer to face a strong England side in the latter stages. Most importantly, a top finish in the group will also give their covid-affected players a chance to rejoin the squad before the quarterfinal on January 27.
