Five-time champions India began their 2026 Men’s Under-19 World Cup campaign with a six wicket win (via DLS) over United States of America, but not without a brief scare.

When right-arm quick Henil Patel’s five-wicket haul skittled USA for 107, it looked like it would be an easy win for India. However, in a rain-affected chase, India lost three wickets – including those of captain Ayush Mhatre and Vaibhav Sooryavanshi – inside the first six overs. But Abhigyan Kundu, who hit a double-century in the Under-19 Asia Cup in the lead up to the World Cup, played an assured knock to seal the deal.

Henil, who draws inspiration from Dale Steyn, struck in his first over in the first innings, with Amrinder Gill the first to fall to his extra bounce as he edged one to second slip. USA opener Sahil Garg and wicketkeeper Arjun Mahesh then put up a resistance, even if runs were hard to come by. They added 28 runs in 45 deliveries before Garg sent Deepesh Devendran’s short ball straight to deep third.

Two overs later, Henil had his second when USA captain Utkarsh Srivastava shouldered arms but couldn’t get his bat out of the way, dragging the ball onto the stumps. This was the first of two double-wicket overs for Henil, as he had the set Mahesh slicing to deep third too.

Spin was introduced in the 16th over and the decision paid off as Amogh Arepally chipped left-arm spinner Khilan Patel to cover. However, Adnit Jhamb and Nitish Sudini looked settled against the spin and put on USA’s highest partnership – 30 in 8.5 overs.

Sudini tried some big shots, but was beaten by the spin, however the pair rotated strike nicely. With the spinners failing to create an opening, Mhatre went back to pace and RS Ambrish got the breakthrough with a length ball that took Jhamb’s outside edge.

A brilliant piece of fielding then sent Adit Kappa back. He hit a ball to cover’s right and took off for the single, but Vihaan Malhotra – a livewire in the field – dived and made a good stop. He then nailed a direct hit at the non-striker’s end.

With just three wickets in hand, Sudini then upped the tempo but Henil ended a 25-run stand by bouncing out Sabrish Prasad. Next ball, Henil cleaned up No. 10 Rishabh Shimpi and found himself on a hat-trick. But he never got another crack as Sudini tried to take on Vaibhav Sooryavanshi’s part-time bowling and picked out long-off, leaving India 108 to chase.

India’s start to the chase was scratchy. First, the players had to walk off for a short rain delay before the first ball of the chase. When they returned, Mhatre cut the first ball straight to point where Gill put down a straight-forward chance. Sooryavanshi then miscued a shot down the ground, but managed to clear mid-off.

It looked like the nerves had calmed when Mhatre hit two gorgeous boundaries off left-armer Shimpi. But Ritvik Appidi, denied in the first over, wasn’t going to be denied again. On the second ball of his second over, Sooryavanshi charged down but was cramped for room and dragged the ball onto his stumps. One over later, the players went off due to lightning nearby and the delay was extended by a spell of rain that left behind a wet outfield.

There was more trouble for India once play resumed after a two-hour delay. Appidi troubled No. 3 Vedant Trivedi throughout the over and on the last ball, Trivedi hit a crisp cut straight to Gill, who held on this time.

With another drizzle around and perhaps feeling the need to up the tempo, Mhatre went on the attack next over. He got a top edge off a pull for four off Shimpi but when he went to hook another short ball, Gill took a good catch running in from deep fine leg. Gill slipped as he ran in, but maintained his composure to complete the catch.

In walked Kundu and immediately stamped his authority with a sublime drive through cover point for four. Malhotra got off the mark first ball with a back-foot punch through covers and in the next over, Kundu hit back-to-back on-drives off Shimpi.

Kundu hit another smooth drive through point before a mix-up almost cost Malhotra’s wicket when he tapped one in front of point and took off for a single. But Malhotra didn’t last long as Srivastava drew the outside edge and Garg grabbed the chance at slip.

Kundu and Kanishk Chouhan ensured there were no more hiccups for India. In the 18th over, Kundu lofted Kappa down the ground for four to bring the target within one hit. He then finished the game with a six over long-on to finish unbeaten on a 41-ball 42.

Brief scores:
India Under 19s 99 for 4 (Abigiyan Kundu 42*; Ritvik Appidi 2-24) beat USA Under 19s  107 (Nitish Sudini 36; Henil Patel 5-16) by six wickets (via DLS)

[Cricinfo]

A fired-up UP Warriorz  (UPW) side breathed some life into their WPL 2026 campaign by earning their first points of the tournament, and they did it in style against the defending champions Mumbai Indians (MI). UPW were playing back-to-back games, but they turned up with a fresh approach to hand MI their second loss in four games.

UPW’s pace bowlers bossed the powerplay, their spinners strangled MI’s batters briefly, and even though Nat Sciver-Brunt’s 65 lifted MI to 161, Harleen Deol smashed an unbeaten 64 off 39 balls, barely 24 hours after she had been contentiously retired out, to lead the UPW chase. She peppered the boundary 12 times and saw Ch;oe Tryon hammer an unbeaten 27 off 11 in her second WPL innings to seal the seven-wicket win.

After Amelia Kerr’s struggles opening the batting in the first two games, MI decided to partner Amanjot Kaur with G Kamalini at the top, but that didn’t pay off either. Kranti Gaud and Shikha Pandey kept swinging the new ball away from the openers, who kept edging and missing in the powerplay of 32 runs, the second-lowest in WPL without losing a wicket. Kamalini barely moved her feet and while Amanjot put away the odd delivery when she got width, she also edged and missed plenty of times.

Amanjot nearly fell in the third over for 6, but her outside edge bisected first slip and the wicketkeeper for four. Her edges became a recurring theme while facing 27 off the 36 balls in the powerplay. An outside and inside-edge fetched her two boundaries in three balls as Gaud bowled her fourth over on the bounce with her tail up. It was Deepti Sharma and Sophie Ecclestone who soon had the openers holing out in consecutive overs: Amanjot fell for 38 off 33, whereas Kamalini’s horror night ended on 5 off 12.

Deepti and Ecclestone then looped and turned the ball with such a lack of pace that the experienced duo of Harmanpreet Kaur and Sciver-Brunt also couldn’t put the ball away. The duo started to open up after the halfway mark when Sciver-Brunt found the gap with a reverse sweep and Harmanpreet hit a monstrous six off Asha Sobhana in the 13th over. Asha countered with a wicket immediately, but the credit should go to Tryon, who completed a stunning diving catch at square leg.

An in-form Nicola Carey was all Sciver-Brunt needed for company as she started to find the gaps with ease. She pulled Asha for two fours with a straight six in between to take the run rate towards seven. Carey then hammered Tryon for four fours in an over and Sciver-Brunt’s streak of boundaries brought up her 32-ball fifty, her 10th in the WPL,joint most with Harmanpreet and Meg Lanning. Sciver-Brunt had earlier been put down by a one-handed effort from Lanning and she got another life when Deepti couldn’t hold on to a tough return chance in a 15-run 18th over. UPW pulled back again in the last two overs to keep MI down to a below-par total.

UPW’s powerplay was hardly different from MI’s: one opener – Kiran Navgire – never got going while the other, Lanning, hogged the strike. Even though she found boundaries, she looked far from her usual self. Lanning also got a life on 16, when Sanskriti Gupta put one down at point but MI didn’t have to wait long to send her back. Sciver-Brunt handed UPW a double blow, having both Lanning and Navgire hole out in the space of five balls to leave UPW on a tricky 45 for 2 in the seventh over.

It was almost like the retired-out decision lit a fire in her as Deol came out with intent. She started by collecting three fours off her first three deliveries with a cut, drive and late dab to pierce different gaps on the off side, and the cameras immediately showed coach Abhishek Nayar, who had called her back on Wednesday. With No. 3 Phoebe Litchfield also in good nick at the other end, Deol kept going after MI as they kept offering width on the off side.

She bagged another streak of three fours in four balls and all on the off side off Shabnim Ismail to stamp her name all over the chase to make the equation a gettable 64 from 48. After striking eight fours in her first 20 balls – all on the off side – with timing and placement, she finally collected her first boundary through leg when she pulled Kerr behind square. Kerr, however, dismissed Litchfield for the eighth time in T20s to end that 15th over before Deol brought up a 32-ball fifty and smashed Gupta for three fours in her 15-run over.

Even though the equation became a comfortable 29 off 24, Deol and Tryon kept their foot on the pedal for regular boundaries and finished things off with 11 balls to spare.

Brief scores:
UP Warriorz Women  162 for 3 in 18.1 overs  (Meg Lanning 25, Kiran Navgire 10, Phoebe Litchfield 25, Harleen Deol 64*,  Chloe Tryon 27*; Nat  Sciver-Brunt 2-28, Amelia Kerr 1-42) beat Mumbai Indians Women 161 for 5 in 20 overs (Nat Sciver-Brunt 65, Amanjot Kaur 38, Harmanpreet Kaur 16, Nicola Carey 32*; Shikha Pandey 1-25, Deepti Sharma 1-31, Sophie Ecclestone 1-26, Asha Sobhana 1-33) by seven wickets

[Cricinfo]