India have qualified for the semi-finals of the 2026 U-19 World Cup after defeating Pakistan by 58 runs in the final match of the Super Six on Sunday, February 1 at the Queens Sports Club in Bulawayo. The Ayush Mhatre-led side continued their unbeaten run in the tournament as they outplayed their arch-rivals comprehensively and entered the semi-finals in dominant and convincing fashion.
Set a target of 253 runs, Pakistan had to chase in 33.3 overs to secure qualification for the semi-finals. However, the men in green showed little urgency in chasing down the target in the allotted time frame and seemed to accept a soft exit from the tournament. To make matters worse, they failed to chase down the target even within the allotted 50 overs, ending up with 194 in 46.2 overs.
FIFA U19 World Cup 2026: India vs Pakistan Update
Pakistan lost in-form Sameer Minhas early in the run when he was dismissed lbw by Henil Patel for 9 off 11 balls. However, Hamza Zahoor (42 off 49 balls) and Usman Khan (66 off 92 balls) tried to steady the innings and put on a second wicket partnership of 65 runs off 80 deliveries.
Despite their partnership, the duo clearly had little urgency to keep up with the required steep run rate of 7.5 runs per rep as they continued to progress at a snail’s pace. Captain Farhan Yousaf (38 off 39 balls) came in at number four after the 17th over, with Pakistan at 88/2. He joined Usman Khan at the crease and the pair added another 63 runs off 76 balls for the third wicket.
Ayush Mhatre’s game-changing magic
Despite both batsmen being well set and Pakistan only losing two wickets at this stage, neither batsman still felt the need to step up during the middle overs. As a result, Pakistan were knocked out of the tournament after failing to complete the chase in 33.3 overs, while India comfortably advanced to the semi-finals.
Although Pakistan eventually set their sights on chasing the target inside the full 50 overs, their hopes were effectively dashed by Ayush Mhatra, who returned figures of 3/21 from eight overs, and Khilan Patel, who took 3/35 in 9.2 overs. The bowling duo tore through Pakistan’s batting line-up as the Men in Green lost their last eight wickets for just 43 runs to seal a memorable victory for India.
Earlier, India were bowled out for 252 in 49.5 overs after Pakistan bowled them out first. The men in blue were soon reduced to 47/3 after Vaibhav Suryavanshi (30 off 22 balls) failed to convert his promising startalthough he received two postponements. Aaron George (16 off 25 balls) and Ayush Mhatre (0 off 2 balls) also departed cheaply, leaving India in early trouble.
Meanwhile, India finished top of Group 2 of the Super Sixes with eight points. They secured qualification for the semi-finals along with England, while Australia and Afghanistan progressed from Super Sixes Group 1.
India will face Afghanistan in the semi-finals
The Ayush Mhatre-led side will next face Afghanistan in the second semi-final on February 4 at the Harare Sports Club in Harare. Conversely, Australia and England will clash in the first semi-final on February 3 in Bulawayo. The winners of the two semi-finals will then face each other in the final, which will be played on February 6 in Harare.
After their dismissal, Vedant Trivedi stood tall with a composed 68-run knock off 98 balls, holding the innings together during a difficult phase. Apart from him, valuable contributions from RS Ambrish (29 off 38 balls) and Kanishk Chouhan (35 off 29 balls) provided the much-needed impetus and helped India cross the 250-run mark.
For Pakistan, Abdul Subhan emerged as the pick of the bowlers, finishing with impressive figures of 3/33 in 9.5 overs, while Mohammad Sayyam also claimed two wickets to finish with figures of 2/69.
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Issued by:
Rishabh Beniwal
Published on:
February 1, 2026
