Back to back U19 Asia Cup title for Bangladesh U19

Bangladesh has emerged as the 2024 U-19 Asia Cup champions after defeating India by 59 runs. This marks the second consecutive time the junior Tigers have lifted the Asia Cup trophy. India, chasing a target of 199 set by Bangladesh, was bowled out for just 139 runs in their pursuit.

After reaching the final for the second year in a row, Bangladesh secured back-to-back titles. In the previous edition, Bangladesh defeated the UAE to claim the trophy. This time, the young Tigers faced India in the final, and they didn’t allow the Indian team any chance to fight back.

The Indian captain won the toss in the Dubai final and opted to bowl first. Bangladesh was restricted to 198 runs. However, India’s batting crumbled as they failed to reach the target, ending their innings at 139 runs in 35.2 overs.

Bangladesh got an early breakthrough in the second over when Al Fahad dismissed Ayush Matre for just 1 run. Another opener, Vaibhav Suryavanshi, was caught by Maruf Mridha off a delivery, returning to the pavilion with only 9 runs. Andre Siddharth managed to score 20 runs before his dismissal. Captain Mohammad Aman and KP Kartikeya tried to steady the ship, but their partnership was short-lived.

In the 21st over, pace bowler Iqbal Hossain Imon made a decisive impact. He took two wickets for just 1 run, dismissing KP Kartikeya and Nikhil Kumar. Imon wasn’t done yet; in his next over, he sent wicketkeeper-batter Harvansh Pangalya back to the pavilion.

Iqbal Imon's aggressive pace bowling shattered India's middle order, as they went from 73 for 3 to 81 for 6. India lost another key wicket at a team total of 92 when Kiran Chormale was dismissed by Al Fahad, doubling the wicket count for Bangladesh.

Mohammad Aman, who top-scored for India with 26 runs, was bowled by Bangladesh's captain Azizul Hakim Tamim. Hardik Raj, who had made 24 off 21 balls, was also dismissed by Tamim. The final wicket of the innings fell when Chaitan Sharma was sent packing by Tamim as well.

India's innings came to an end at 139 runs, handing Bangladesh a thrilling 59-run victory and securing their second consecutive U-19 Asia Cup title.