02 February,2024 07:30 AM IST | Bloemfontein | PTI
India U-19 players celebrate a Nepal wicket yesterday. Pic/Getty Images
Contrasting hundreds by Sachin Dhas and skipper Uday Saharan were the twin pillars on which India built their commanding 132-run win over Nepal in their final Super Six Group 1 match, which also carried them to the semifinals of the ICC Under-19 World Cup semifinals here on Friday. Dhas (116, 101 balls) and Saharan (100, 107 balls), who added 215 off 202 balls, lifted India from a tricky 62/3 to a formidable 297/5 after they opted to bat first.
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The tournament favourites, who now have eight points, then limited the Himalayan nation to 165 for nine and in the semis, India are all set to face South Africa at Benoni on Tuesday. However, Nepal made a rather strong start to their chase reaching 65 for 1 in the 14th over before they fell headlong, losing six wickets for a mere 12 runs to be placed at 77 for 7 in the 28th over.
Left-arm spinner Saumy Pandey, who now has 16 wickets to be placed at the second spot in the tournament's highest wicket-taker list, sparked the collapse with figures of 10-1-29-4. The only silver lining for Nepal was the unbroken last wicket partnership of Aakash Chand (18 not out) and Durgesh Gupta (29 not out) who put together 45 runs to cover the stipulated 50 overs.
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Before Pandey entered the stage, new ball bowler Raj Limbani initiated the downfall by dismissing Deepak Bohara, who managed 22 runs off 42 balls. Pandey soon joined the party. First, he removed Uttam Magar (8), who struggled to find gaps and fell while attempting an aggressive shot, finding the fielder at mid-on.
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