What happened the last time India played Australia in an U19 World Cup final?
Australia's dramatic win over Pakistan in the semi-final of the 2024 Under-19 World Cup on Thursday secured them a birth in the summit clash for the fifth time in history. They became the second team to reach five finals and will meet India that have reached a record ninth final.
The final scenario is the same as the senior men's 2023 World Cup last year where Pat Cummins and company defeated India in Ahmedabad to clinch the title. Like in the senior competition, it's also only the second time these two heavyweights will meet in the Under-19 World Cup final.
The last time it happened was in 2012 when the Kangaroos hosted the competition. They reached the final after going unbeaten in the group stage and smoking Bangladesh and South Africa in the quarter-finals and semi-finals, respectively.
India, on the other hand, lost their tournament opener against the West Indies by four wickets and then won the remaining games, including against Pakistan and New Zealand in the quarters and semis to reach Townsville.
India won the toss for the first time in the competition and opted to bowl first on the greenish track in the final. It was proven right when Sandeep Sharma used his swing to take out both openers Cameron Bancroft and Jimmy Peirson in the first three overs.
Kamal Passi was conceding runs from the other end though, so India's captain Unmukt Chand brought in spinner Baba Aparajith who dismissrd Kurtis Patterson instantly.
Meyrick Buchanan got out soon as well, allowing skipper William Bosisto and Travis Head to the crease. Both steadied the ship from 38/4 until Head, batting carefully in comparison to the present after a dropped catch, became a victim of a mix-up for 37 (56) and stormed off the field.
Bosisto got good support from Ashton Turner, who was also playing like a spinner at the time. He also survived a dropped chance but calmly built a 93-run partnership with his captain.
Once he got out, it was all about getting a big flourish for Bosisto. In the end, Australia had to be happy with a sub-par 225/8. It was a score they wouldn't have taken before the innings started but would have jumped on at 38/4.
India were put under early pressure as opener Prashant Chopra got out for a seven-ball duck in the second over against Mark Steketee. His partner, Chand, also played and missed multiple deliveries at the start and looked scratchy, mostly because he didn't have a lot of runs in the lead-up to the final.
Aparajith brought the release through a flurry of cover drives and India was soon 75/1. But then came the kind of collapse that ruins tournaments, the "half an hour of bad cricket". Aparjith lobbed one to extra cover against Gurinder Sandhu and then the catcher, Ashton Turner, took out Hanuma Vihari three overs later.
Australia brought back pacer Joel Paris in the tense phase and he responded by getting rid of Vijay Zol early, caught on the outside edge by the 'keeper. Suddenly India were at 97/4 with Chand, who had just recently started to get going on one end, and wicketkeeper-batter Smit Patel on the other end.
The partnership was solid and cool. They focused on singles and picked up boundaries only when the balls were loose, like Turner's long hop in the last over of the second powerplay which Chand sent out of the ground.
If that momentum wasn't enough for India to dominate the six runs/over equation in the last 10 overs, they were further helped by Bosisto dropping a dolly at deep mid-wicket to give Patel a second chance against pacer Alex Gregory. Three balls later, Chand hit him for a massive six to crush the hosts' remaining confidence.
Later, he hit the same bowler for another biggie to bring up a magnificent hundred, the first from an Indian captain in the final.
In the 48th over, with six runs needed from 18 balls, he knocked Turner around for a few singles and doubles before hitting a joyful one over mid-wicket to win India the game and kick off ecstatic celebrations.
Who was the Player of the Match in the 2012 U-19 World Cup Final between India and Australia?
Unmukt Chand was awarded the Player of the Match for his match-winning century. He said after the game:
"I do not know what is happening right now, thankful to God, I could take the team through, the Aussies played very well but we came on top."
Chand's counterpart, Bosisto, who had been among the top run-scorers in the competition with 276 runs and remained not out five of six times, was awarded the Player of the Tournament.