His team bundled out for 58 by India in the semi-finals of the ICC U-19 World Cup, England captain Moeen Ali seemed too shocked to explain what went wrong today. “I suppose India has shown how cricket is supposed to be played,” was all Ali could say. Namibia, Scotland, West Indies and now England. On a roll, India Juniors stormed into the finals with an emphatic 234-run win, setting up a Sunday showdown with the winner of the other semi-final tomorrow between Pakistan and Australia. Former West Indies fast bowler Ian Bishop, now a television commentator, sums up what most people here have been saying: “The Indians have raised the bar, the others are nowhere near.” India captain Ravikant Shukla is not worried about who they will run into the finals. “Australia or Pakistan, anyone will do,” he says as his mates cheer him on. Coach Ventakesh Prasad has his arm around Man of the Match Chesteshwar Pujara whose sparkling 129 put India on course for the finals. “That’s how you should play. Without taking risks and playing perfect cricketing shots, our team scores 290. I am happy with that,” Prasad tells him. Pujara nods but says “It’s not me alone, it’s the team. Dhiman’s 44-ball 47 made it easy for me in the beginning and later Abu Nacheem (4/14) made it a one-sided game.” If Pujara and Nacheem swung it for India, others too didn’t lag behind. Rohit Sharma (52 off 79 balls) and Mayank Tehlan (26 from 28 balls) delivered once again during the mid-overs. So how does the team celebrate? As he hops into the bus, wicket-keeper Pinal Shah from Baroda says “it’s either a mall or restaurant”. That’s to help them keep the cool till the big one on Sunday.
