India on Monday (December 27) registered a fighting four-wicket victory over Afghanistan to book a semi-final spot in the ongoing Under-19 Asia Cup.

Asked to bat first, Afghanistan U-19 posted 259/4 in 50 overs on the back of Ijaz Ahmad Ahmadzai’s 86 not out off 68 balls. Skipper Suliman Safi also played a brilliant knock of 86-ball 73.

For India, Kaushal Tambe (1-25) and Vicky Ostwal (1-35) bowled economically and claimed one wicket each.

In reply, India U-19 got off to a flying start as the duo of Harnoor Singh (65) and Angkrish Raghuvanshi (35) put on 104 runs for the opening wicket.

However, Noor Ahmad dismissed both the openers in quick succession to trigger a collapse. While the likes of Shaik Rasheed (6) and Aaradhya Yadav (12) got out cheaply, captain Yash Dhull (26) and Nishant Sindhu (19) failed to convert starts as India slipped to 197/6.

In the end, Raj Bawa (43 not out) and Kaushal Tambe (35 not out) joined forces and added an unbroken 65-run stand to take the Boys in Blue over the line with 10 balls to spare.

Noor Ahmad starred with the ball for Afghanistan U-19, returning with the figures of 4/43 in his stipulated 10 overs.

India will face the winner of the last group league match between Bangladesh and Sri Lanka in the semi-final on Thursday (December 30).

Brief Scores:

Afghanistan U-19 259/4 in 50 overs (Ijaz Ahmad Ahmadzai 86*, Suliman Safi 73; Kaushal Tambe 1/25) lost to India U-19 262/6 in 48.2 overs (Harnoor Singh 65; R Bawa 43*; Noor Ahmad 4/43) by four wickets.