India secure a two-wicket victory against South Africa in a thrilling encounter in the ICC U-19 World Cup 2024 semifinal and qualified for the final again, a record 9th time in the competition. The defending champions were not always in a dominant position in the game, with them losing four wickets very quickly in the chase of 245. But captain Uday Saharan and Sachin Dhas combined for a 171-run partnership to take India to a winning position.  South Africa were coming in the game with wins behind them and with fast bowler Kwena Maphaka in great form. A victory against them will definitely give the young Indian cricketers much confidence ahead of the final, specially winning the match from a position of crisis. India will face the winner between Australia and Pakistan in the ICC U-19 World Cup 2024 final. Sachin Dhas Misses Well-Deserved Century in India vs South Africa ICC U-19 World Cup 2024 Semifinal.

South Africa had a steady start to their innings after India won the toss and opted to bowl, as they piled up short partnerships which added substance to their total and the momentum never went away even after losing wickets. Wicketkeeper-batter Lhuan-dre Pretorius (76) was the highest scorer for the young Proteas as he opened the batting and set the foundation for a decent score. Richard Seletswane supported him well as he scored a valuable 64 runs taking South Africa's score beyond 200. Tristan Luus provides strong finish to take the final total near to 250 which posed a challenge for the Indian batters. Raj Limbani was the pick of the Indian bowlers picking up three wickets while all-rounder Musheer Khan and Saumy Pandey were tight with their bowling and was economical in leaking runs. ZIM vs IND 2024: Zimbabwe To Host India for Five-Match T20I Series in July.

While chasing the total, India landed in early trouble losing the top four wickets in just 32 runs. Openers Adarsh Singh, Arshin Kulkarni, batting mainstay Musheer Khan and Priyanshu Moliya all perished in-front of combined threat of the rising Protea star Kweana Maphaka and Tristan Luus. India were looking at an uphill task at that point. It was then Sachin Dhas and captain Uday Saharan stitched up a significant partnership both scoring half-centuries. Sachin scored a stunning 96 runs off 95 deliveries to power India in control in the game. Unfortunately he missed on his century and India found themselves in a tricky position in the end. But captain Uday Saharan (81), supported by Raj Limbani, took them over the finishing line.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Feb 06, 2024 09:23 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).