Unmukt Chand century takes India to final

India U-19s 247 for 4 (Chand 116, Zol 54) beat Sri Lanka Under-19s 244 for 7 (Weerakkody 73, Dickwella 66) by six wickets
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details

A commanding century by India Under-19s captain Unmukt Chand took them to the final of the Under-19 Asia Cup in Kuala Lumpur as they registered a comfortable six-wicket victory over Sri Lanka Under-19s. The bedrock of India's chase of 245 was a steady third-wicket partnership of 105 between Chand and Maharashtra batsman Vijay Zol. The win sets up a final between India and Pakistan on Sunday.

Led by Tamil Nadu spinner Baba Aparajith, who bowled an economical spell (2-29), India kept a stranglehold on Sri Lanka early in the innings. Sri Lanka progressed at less than four runs per over and they regularly lost wickets. They seemed to have fallen into a hole when No. 4 batsman Angelo Jayasinghe was run out in the 34th over, but left-hand batsman Sandun Weerakkody continued his impressive run in the tournament with 73 off 75 deliveries, and wicketkeeper Niroshan Dickwella scored a quick 66 to take Sri Lanka to a competitive total. Their partnership of 113 runs came at a run-rate of 7.29 as they recovered from 121 for 4 in the 34th over to 234 for 5 in the penultimate over. Weerakkody's innings, which had five boundaries and two sixes, boosted his tournament average to 61.33. Left-arm seamer Rush Kalaria took the brunt of the punishment by the two batsmen, giving away 55 runs in his eight overs.

India, on the other hand, did not have to depend on a late-innings flourish as their chase was shepherded by Chand's 116. Sri Lanka seemed to have a look-in after the wickets of Punjab batsman Manan Vohra in the sixth over, and Aparajith for 23 in the 18th over, but India were soon back on track. Zol, who had gained a reputation as a big-innings player with a 451 against Assam Under-19 last year, supported his captain with a steady 54. Their stand of 105 in 124 balls took the game away from Sri Lanka before Zol was dismissed in the 39th over. Neither batsmen took many risks but scored the odd boundary to keep pace with the required run-rate. Chand fell in the 47th over, bowled by pacer Sanitha de Mel before Uttar Pradesh player Akshdeep Nath and No. 6 Sanju Samson finished the game with 17 balls to spare.