Bengal youngster leads India to remarkable win against South Africa

Ishan
Ishan Porel bowled brilliantly in the warm-up game against South Africa. Image Source: instagram

Internet Desk: When the big boys are struggling to make a positive mark in South Africa, the Indian colts are seemed to be in a fantastic shape as they begin their preparation for the ICC World Cup in an emphatic fashion. The young seam bowler Ishan Porel bowled exceedingly well to lead India towards the glory. The youngster picked up 4 wickets against the Proteas to bolster his confidence ahead of the acid test.

A four-wicket haul by Bengal pacer Ishan Porel helped India notch up a massive 189-run win over South Africa in a warm-up match ahead of the U-19 World Cup here today.

Batting first, India U-19 team scored 332 for 8, riding on twin half-centuries by Aryan Juyal (86) and Himanshu Rana (68) here.

In reply, the Proteas were bundled out for 143 with Porel getting rid of South Africa’s top order, claiming four wickets for 23 runs in his eight overs.

Electing to bat, India started off well with openers Prithvi Shaw (16) and Manjot Kalra (31) sharing an opening stand of 54 runs.

However, pacer Akhona Mnyaka got rid of the Indian top order quickly, dismissing Shaw and Shubman Gill in the span of two balls. He claimed Kalra’s wicket 10 balls later.

Aryan and Himanshu then steadied the Indian innings as the duo hit eight boundaries and a six each in the 92-ball and 69-ball innings respectively.

Chasing the huge total, the South African batsmen never settled down, losing wickets at regular intervals.

Jean du Plessis scored a lone fifty off 82 balls before he was trapped leg before on a Shiva Singh delivery in the 38th over.

Singh (2/9) along with Kamlesh Nagarkoti (2/15) and Abhishek Sharma (2/16) picked up two wickets each for India.

Bengal’s bowling instructor for Vision Twenty20 project, TA Sekhar knows him pretty well and complemented the youngster by saying, “It will do his confidence a world of good. We knew that he will do well in the seam friendly conditions of New Zealand. But at the same time, he should not get get carried away with the things. It’s just a preperation game and he has a long way to go.”

Brief scores:

India: 332/8 in 50 overs (Aryan Juyal 86, Himanshu Rana 68; Akhona Mnyaka 40/3).

South Africa: 143 all out in 38.3 overs (Jean du Plessis 50, Jiveshan Pillay 29; Ishan Porel 23/4).