Ariful Islam's counter-punching fifty and a fiery spell by left-arm pacer Maruf Mridha helped Bangladesh secure a comfortable four-wicket win over India, propelling them to the final of the ACC Under-19 Asia Cup on Friday in Dubai.
On a slightly double-paced pitch, Indian batters struggled, getting bundled out for 188 in 42.4 overs. Musheer Khan (50) and Murugan Abhishek (62) were the main contributors. Maruf's exceptional spell (4/41) gave Bangladesh early control in the second semifinal.
Despite some jitters, Bangladesh chased down the target in 42.5 overs, with Ariful Islam's impressive innings of 94 off 90 balls. Maruf set the tone for Bangladesh's success with a superb opening spell, reducing India to 13 for three inside seven overs.
In the first semifinal, UAE surprised Pakistan by 11 runs, setting up a final clash with Bangladesh. UAE posted 193 all out, thanks to captain Aayan Khan's 55 and opener Aryansh Sharma's 46. They defended the target, bowling out Pakistan for 182 in 49.3 overs.
Brief scores:
India: 188 all out in 42.4 overs (Murugan Abhishek 62, Musheer Khan 50; Maruf Mridha 4/41, Sheikh Jibon 2/29) lost to Bangladesh: 189 for 6 in 42.5 overs (Ariful Islam 94, Ahrar Amin 44; Nawan Tiwari 3/35) by 4 wickets.
UAE: 193 all out in 47.5 overs (Aayan Khan 55, Aryansh Sharma 46, Ethan D'Souza 37; Ubaid Shah 4/44) beat Pakistan: 182 all out in 49.3 overs (Saad Baig 50, Azan Awais 41; Ayman Ahmed 2/18, Hardik Pai 2/35) by 11 runs.
