Prodigies Mhatre and Suryavanshi headline India’s Men’s U19 Asia Cup squad

The junior selection committee of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has announced the squad for the 50-over Men’s U19 Asia Cup, which will be played in the United Arab Emirates from November 29.

Mohd. Amaan, who plays cricket for Uttar Pradesh in the domestic circuit, will captain the 15-member squad. Kiran Chormale, from Maharashtra, has been selected as vice-captain. 

Meanwhile, Ayush Mhatre, who has already played Ranji Trophy for Mumbai at 17, has also been picked in the squad along with 13-year-old Vaibhav Suryavanshi from Bihar, who recently smashed a 58-ball century against Australia U-19 in a four-day game in Chennai. He became the youngest-ever centurion in competitive cricket in the game’s 177-year-old history.

Also read - Vaibhav Suryavanshi: How this 13-year-old is putting Bihar on India’s cricket map  

Other notable picks include Tamil Nadu’s 18-year-old Andre Siddharth, who is seen as a really special talent and proved it on his Ranji Trophy debut. The six-foot-three-inch youngster has already scored 294 runs at an average of 98 in five first-class innings. Kerala’s young leg spinner, Md. Enaan is also amongst the 15. 

India U19 will begin their campaign against Pakistan on November 30 in Dubai. They are placed in Group A along with Pakistan, Japan, and hosts UAE. Group B features Afghanistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and Nepal.  

The final of the tournament will be played on December 8. 

India U19 Squad: Ayush Mhatre, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Andre Siddarth, Mohd. Amaan (C), Kiran Chormale (VC), Pranav Pant, Harvansh Singh Pangalia (WK), Anurag Kawde (WK), Hardik Raj, Md. Enaan, KP Karthikeya, Samarth Nagaraj, Yudhajit Guha, Chetan Sharma, Nikhil Kumar

Non-travelling Reserves: Sahil Parakh, Naman Pushpak, Anmoljeet Singh, Pranav Raghavendra, D Dipesh

India U19 Group Fixtures

November 30 vs Pakistan, Dubai, 10:30 AM

December 2 vs Japan, Sharjah, 10:30 AM 

December 4 vs UAE, Sharjah, 10:30 AM 

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