India Under-19 won the second Youth ODI against Australia Under-19 by nine wickets in Puducherry today (September 23), chasing down their 177-run target in 22 overs to take them to a series victory.
Sahil Parakh scored an unbeaten 109 off just 75 balls after the India bowling attack ran through Australia. The tourists were only able to muster 176 by the time they were bowled out with three balls to spare of the innings, with Addison Sheriff the only batter to reach 30.
He was run out by Yudhajit Guha off the first ball of the 45th, before Hayden Schiller was bowled by Samarth Nagari off the following delivery. Three India bowlers took two wickets, in Samarth, Mohammed Enaan and Kiran Chormale, while Guha and Hardik Raj had one apiece.
Following that demolition with the ball, Parakh put on a masterclass with the bat. His innings included five sixes and 14 fours, combining with Abhigyan Kundu for a 167-run partnership. Kundu scored 53 off 50 balls and also finished unbeaten, with the winning runs hit off the final ball of the 22nd over.
The result sealed a series victory for India U19s in the ODI leg of Australia's tour. India also recorded a big victory in the first ODI on Saturday (September 21), winning that match by seven wickets with 84 balls remaining. They will eye clean sweep in the format on Thursday (September 26), when the two sides will play the third and final match in the format, before moving on to two youth Tests at the end of the month.
The series is the first between the two sides since Australia claimed victory against India in the U19 World Cup final in South Africa earlier this year. Australia won that game by 79 runs after bowling India out for 174 in 43.5 overs. However, the teams from that match have barely any cross-over with the sides now, with Australia's Oliver Peake the only player to have appeared in both the final and the second ODI today.
Follow Wisden for all cricket updates, including live scores, match stats, quizzes and more. Stay up to date with the latest cricket news, player updates, team standings, match highlights, video analysis and live match odds.
