Pak, rain foil U-19s
A two-run heartbreak ended Bangladesh Under-19s' impressive run in the ACC U-19 Asia Cup yesterday as they lost to Pakistan Under-19s after rain denied an exciting finish to the first semifinal at the Kinrara Academy Oval in Kuala Lumpur.
The sky turned darker and flashes of lightning lit up the horizon, causing the match to be suspended at 4:30 pm due to rain, with Pakistan on 199 for five in 39 overs in reply to Bangladesh's 274 for six. After 35 minutes, the umpires called off the match. As Pakistan were ahead by two runs according to the D/L method at that point, Bangladesh's hopes of avenging their one-wicket defeat to the same opponents in the previous edition last year at Galle were extinguished .
"The boys played good cricket and luck simply did not favour us. We were in a good position to win the match but weather played foul. The result was frustrating but the boys can take a lot of positives from here ahead of next year's World Cup campaign in New Zealand. The most pleasing fact was that the batsmen scored runs after frustrating performances against Afghanistan and Nepal at home. We failed to play the final but the boys have gained confidence from this tournament," informed selector Ehsanul Haque over phone from Kuala Lumpur.
Put in to bat first, Bangladesh Under-19s made a good start as their opening pair added 51 before Mohammad Naim was dismissed for 14, but Pinak Ghosh carried on his good form along with skipper Saif Hassan as they put on 105 runs for the second wicket.
Left-handed Pinak, who hit an unbeaten 81 against India in the last group match, struck a 93-ball 82 that contained eight boundaries and a six, while Saif also continued his good form with a 78-ball 61 with nine fours and a six.
Afif Hossain was the other notable scorer with an unbeaten 50 off 55 balls that featured five boundaries, and a cameo of 22 from 15 balls from Nayeem Hasan helped Bangladesh set a challenging target for Pakistan.
In reply, Pakistan were reduced to 51 for three before Mohammad Taha's 92 brought them back to contention. The rain however ruined a good end to the game and made sure Bangladesh could not overcome the semifinal barrier, much like last year's World Cup at home.
SCORES IN BRIEF
BANGLADESH UNDER-19S: 274-6 in 50 overs (Pinak 82, Naim 14, Saif 61, Hridoy 5, Afif 52 not out, Aminul 13, Nayeem 22 not out; Riaz 3-53)
PAKISTAN UNDER-19S: 199-5 in 39 overs (Taha 92, Nazir 26, Saad 35 not out; Onik 2-35)
Result: Pakistan Under-19s won by two runs in D/L method.
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