The Indian Under-19 cricket team produced a fantastic all-round performance to decimate South Africa U-19 by 201 runs in the final and lift the Quadrangular Series trophy here today.
Put in to bat, India made 267 for six in their 50 overs before bundling out the South Africans for 66 in 28.1 overs. Mumbai wonderkind Sarfaraz Khan starred for the hosts with an unbeaten 67 and a couple of wickets to his credit.
It was a near-perfect performance by the Indians, who suffered just one loss during the tournament, also featuring Australia and Zimbabwe.
After being sent in to bat, India did not make the best of starts with opener Ankush Bains (1) departing when the team had just three runs on the board.
But other opener Akhil Herwadkar (25) and skipper Vijay Zol (71), steadied the ship with a 51-run second wicket stand.
The partnership ended when Herwadkar was dismissed by Justin Dill in the 15th over, caught by Yaseen Valli. Herwadkar's 46-ball stay featured a four and a six.
The dismissal, however, did little to unsettle the hosts, who relied on steady contributions from their middle-order batsmen to build a good score.
Zol shared a 61-run stand with Ricky Bhui (46) before walking back to the pavillion after becoming Hayes van der Berg's only victim.
Following Zol's wicket, Sarfaraz, the 15-year-old who smashed a hundred against the same opponents earlier in the tournament, walked in and continued his fine form with his 58-ball knock, which included half a dozen fours.
He was given a good support lower down the order by Deepak Hooda (32).
