On Friday, it was England who sealed the third spot in the semis of the U19 World Cup 2026, as they beat New Zealand by 65 runs. Earlier Afghanistan and Australia had already sealed their semis spots; and now the fight is on between India and Pakistan for the last remaining position.
India favorites to win U19 World Cup
For now, India is topping their group and have won 3 out of three matches, while Pakistan has lost one against England. On current form, Ayush Mhatre-led side has ticked all the boxes, and the Pakistan encounter should not be much of a worry, but as is the pressure of this game, nothing can be said for certain.
Sameer Minhas has scored runs at an average of 94, the same batter who inflicted harm on India in the U19 Asia Cup, where Pakistan beat India in the final; the same boy had gone on to make a special ton. So the first threat is from there. While the rest of the batting hasn’t been that good, it is bowling that has been doing wonders.
Ali Raza has picked up 12 wickets in 4 matches, and getting past him would be difficult. Abdul Subhan too has captured 10, while Momin Qamar has 8 to his name. But then, to counter, Abhigyan Kundu has been scoring at an average of 91. Vaibhav Sooryavanshi can topple the best in the class with his strike rate of 133, while Vihaan Malhotra is coming fresh from a 100 in the last match against New Zealand.
Pakistan’s batting no threat, would depend on bowling
So, all in all, it will be a battle, befitting of a virtual quarterfinal. But one must admit, that even if the result does not go in favour of Mhatre & co, there still to look forward too. India will most likely, most likely, sail into the semis, on the basis of their superior NRR which stands at +3.337, while Pakistan is at 1.484.
So, to put things into perspective, Pakistan will have to beat their biggest rivals by over 200 runs, to be able to go through. Aside of that, in case of their win, they can create all the noise of social media, which will result in nothing, while India will look for their 6th U19 World Cup title.
