Indian boys beat archrival Pakistan to title

MUMBAI, JULY 9. India won the inaugural Asian Cricket Council (ACC) under-15 cricket championship defeating Pakistan in the final by 54 runs at the Royal Selangor Club, Kuala Lumpur, on Sunday.

A second-wicket stand of 117 between in-form batsman and `player of the tournament' Ambati Rayudu and Sushil Kumar saw the Indians set a target 210 after skipper Subash Dixit won the toss and elected to bat.

In reply, Pakistan made 155 for nine in 40 overs, the seventh wicket partnership contributing 41. ``In the league match we recovered from 18 for three and 78 for five wickets. But we beat them easily. Again today we had a few problems,'' said coach Roger Binny from the team hotel in Kuala Lumpur.

Rayudu, who evoked praise from team manager, Prof. Ratnakar Shetty and coach Binny, struck 10 fours in his knock of 70 while Sushil Kumar hit seven fours in his 48. After their big stand, the Indians lost ground, slumping from 171 for four to 209.

``We have to look for a batsman at the top, preferably a left- hander for the World Challenge in England. But we don't have one. Navin Chaudhary is a left-hander, but he is more of an allrounder,'' said Binny.

India's success - seven straight wins in a row - was due to the presence of many allrounders in the side. ``When the top and middle order failed against Pakistan in the league match, the lower order pulled us out of troubled waters. We picked as many allrounders as we could,'' remarked Binny.

Mediumpacer Mrigen Talukdar, who made 18 in the final, picked up a wicket to take his tally to 13 in the tournament. This won him the `bowler of the tournament' award.

The other wickettakers for India in the final were Irfan Pathan (1), Panav Raju (1), N. Rathod (2) and Navin Chaudhary (2). Palash Jyoti Das was declared the `best batsman' of the tournament while Abhinav Kumar, the `best wicketkeeper'. The ACC Trophy was presented to the Indian team by the Malaysian Cricket Association (MCA) President, Tunku Imran.

``Initially (because of the rains) the wickets were damp. But later it became very slow. In a way, the wickets were not ideal for limited-overs cricket. The Sri Lankans were simply whacking away, not the method to play on such wickets. It was an excellent exposure for the Indian kids and I think they played very well. Working with the under-15 and under-19 has given me pleasure. I think the team that will be picked for the championship in England (Costcutter under-15 World Challenge) should have a one- week camp, preferably at Bangalore,'' said Binny.

``The boys are naturally thrilled. The Indian High Commissioner, Mr. Paramjit Sahai, was present at the prize distribution function. They won seven matches in a row, which showed their consistency. I am very much impressed with Rayudu. He is a good batsman and an excellent fielder,'' said Prof. Shetty.

The team will return to Chennai on Monday at 10.30 p.m.

The scores:

India: Ashraf Ali b Talal Zia 2; A.T. Rayudu lbw b Akbar Ali 70; Sushil Kumar b Akbar Ali 48; P.J. Das c Shahryar Khan b Akbar Ali 20; S. Dixit b Akbar Ali 13; Abhinav Kumar lbw b Subtain Raza 1; N. Chaudhary c Subtain Raza b Azhar Ali 13; M. Talukdar lbw b Shahryar Khan 18; N. Rathod run out 0; I. Pathan c Subtain Raza b Azhar Ali 0; P. Raju (not out) 0; Extras 24; Total (in 38.5 overs) 209.

Fall of wickets: 1-9, 2-126, 3-137, 4- 171, 5-172, 6-172, 7-205, 8-207, 9-209.

Pakistan bowling: Shahryar Khan 7-1-27- 1, Talal Zia 4-0-28-1, Shahid Yousaf 1-0-10-0, Mohammad Naeem 8-0-31-0, Azhar Ali 6.5-0- 33-2, Subtain Raza 5-1-22-1, Akbar Ali 7-0-44-4.

Pakistan: Masood Asam Butt c Abhinav Kumar b Raju 5; Mohammad Fahim lbw b Talukdar 20; Subtain Raza c Abhinav Kumar b Pathan 16; Shahid Yousaf c Ashraf Ali b N. Rathod 1; Adnan Zaheer (run out) 3; Kashif Mahmood st Abhinav Kumar b N. Chaudhary 26; Mohammad Naeem c Abhinav Kumar b N. Rathod 1; Azhar Ali (run out) 15; Talal Zia st Abhinav Kumar b N. Chaudhary 22; Akbar Ali (not out) 9; Shahryar Khan (not out) 6; Extras 31; Total (for nine wkts. in 40 overs) 155.

Fall of wickets: 1-20, 2-43, 3-53, 4-56, 5-60, 6-62, 7-103, 8- 118, 9-139.

India bowling: Talukdar 7-1-30-1, Raju 5-0-19-1, Pathan 6-0-16-1, Rathod 5-0-10-2, Chaudhary 8-1-24-2, Das 6-0-22-0, Dixit 3-0-17- 0.

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