India and Pakistan gear up for blockbuster final after Raichandani-Sood heroics

After easily defeating Afghanistan Under-19 in the semi-final, India Under-19 advanced to Saturday's final match against Pakistan Under-19. They beat Afghanistan Under-19 by eight wickets, after Pakistan had defeated Bangladesh by the same margin an hour earlier, at the adjacent Al Amerat ground in Muscat.

With an impressive 93, including 13 fours and a six, Captain Lakshya Raichandani led India's pursuit of 228. He put on an 117-run opening stand with Aaryavir Sehwag, who contributed with 51 off 57 balls.

After that, Raichandani and VK Vineeth added 77 runs for the second wicket, effectively eliminating Afghanistan from the game. Vineeth had six points and five fours.

Vineeth ended the chase with Yashbardhan Chauhan, who was unbeaten on 16 off 14 balls when Raichandani retired in the nineties. India finished the chase in 36.5 overs.

India had taken numerous wickets earlier in the day, putting Afghanistan behind in the first 20 overs. Before captain Sohail Khan made an appearance (36 off 44 balls), Noman Sarafzai (51) and Faisal Rahimi (51) briefly stabilized the innings. India's bowlers also worked hard at the end to keep Afghanistan at bay.

Aryan Savsani took two wickets, while Ishan Sood took three. Arjun Rajput, Chauhan, and Kavya Patel each took one wicket.