Harare Sports Club witnessed fireworks on Friday as India’s Vaibhav Suryavanshi carved out 175 runs, helping his side post 411/9 and set England a towering 412 to win the Under-19 World Cup 2026. With both teams hungry for silverware—India for a record sixth, England for a second—tensions ran high.
Captain Ayush Mhatre called correctly and chose to bat. Aaron George’s departure for 9 brought Suryavanshi and Mhatre together for a match-defining 142-run partnership over 90 balls, lifting India to 162. Mhatre’s 53 came off 51 deliveries with flair.
Undeterred, Suryavanshi and Vedant Trivedi blazed 89 runs in 39 balls. The star batsman’s 80-ball 175, studded with 15 boundaries and 15 maximums, shifted the game’s gravity. Post his dismissal, Trivedi and Vihaan Malhotra’s 51-run stand breached 300.
At 308/5, Abhijnan Kundu (40 off 31, 6×4, 1×6) and RS Ambrish (18) rebuilt before Kanishk Chauhan’s fiery 37* off 20 (3×4, 1×6) propelled the score to 411/9. England’s bowlers toiled, led by James Minto’s 3/??, Morgan and Green’s 2 each, and Lumsden’s 1.
As England steps up to chase history, India’s dominant batting display has put them in the driver’s seat in this title clash.