India Outclass Australia To Claim Record 4th Under-19 World Cup Title
Tauranga (New Zealand): Promising opener Manjot Kalra played a starring role with an unbeaten century as India overpowered Australia by eight wickets in the final to claim the ICC U19 World Cup for a record fourth time here on Saturday.
The opener batted through the innings and remained unbeaten on 101 runs off 102 deliveries as the Indians romped past the modest target of 217 runs with 67 balls to spare.
Harvik Desai played an excellent supporting role at the other end and was not out on 47 runs off 61 balls.
Desai brought up the title win in style, smashing a boundary off Australian pacer Will Sutherland through the off-side.
Kalra was adjudged the man of the match while compatriot Shubman Gill took home the player of the tournament award.
"Great feeling. Enjoyed a lot. Conditions were very good. It was a flat wicket to bat on. In the team, it's been a great environment," an overjoyed Kalra told the media after the final.
India thus became the first nation to win the ICC U19 World Cup four times. They had earlier won the title in 2000, 2008 and 2012.
Australia are second on the list with three titles.
This is the second time that India have defeated Australia in the final. They had earlier defeated the boys from Down Under in the final of the 2012 edition.
Chasing a modest target, India got their chase off to a flying start with Manjot and skipper Prithvi Shaw piling up 71 runs for the opening stand.
India's chase was briefly halted by rain after just four overs, but Manjot and Prithvi ensured that they maintained their focus and after coming back they batted out the initial few overs before cutting loose.
But just when the Indian pair threatened to take the match away, pacer Will Sutherland drew first blood for the Australians by rattling Shaw's off-stump.
The Indian skipper scored 29 runs off 41 deliveries with four hits to the fence.
Shaw's dismissal brought in the centurion of the semi-final against Pakistan, Man-of-the-Tournament Shubman Gill, who raised 60 runs for the second wicket with Manjot before perishing to off-spinner Param Uppal on the personal score of 31.
This was unfortunately Gill's first below-50 score in the tournament but wicketkeeper-batsman Harvik Desai ensured that there were no more hiccups in India's road to the title.
With India just five runs shy of the title, Manjot got to his personal landmark, punching one down to square leg for a single even as the celebrations began on the sidelines with the Rahul Dravid-led side romping home in 38.5 overs.
Earlier, electing to bat after winning the toss, Australia rode on Jonathan Merlo's steady 102-ball 76 -- laced with six boundaries -- to set up a modest 216-run total.
Australia lost their three top batsmen with just 59 runs on the board, thanks to pacer Ishan Porel's twin strikes early on.
Porel's victims included the openers Max Bryant (14) and Jack Edwards (28) before fellow fast bowler Kamlesh Nagarkoti joined the party by removing Australian skipper Jason Sangha for an unlucky 13 off 24 balls.
Thereafter, Merlo and Param Uppal (34) steadied the innings with a 75-run fourth wicket stand which saw them going past the 100-run mark.
Left-arm spinner Anukul Roy ended Uppal's 58-ball stay with a brilliant catch in his own follow through.
With Australia tottering at 134/4, Merlo was joined by Nathan McSweeney (23).
The pair added 49 runs for the fifth wicket before McSweeney met the same fate as Uppal, this time caught and bowled by the other Indian spinner Shiva Singh.
Despite losing his partners at the other end, Merlo continued to torment the Indians, raising his maiden half century off 60 balls by chopping a slower delivery from Porel for a single to sweeper cover.
Merlo, however, succumbed under the pressure of scoring quick runs, when he attempted a reverse sweep off Roy only to manage a top-edge for Shiva to grab at sweeper cover, even as Australia's hopes were dashed after losing the last five wickets for just 33 runs.
For the boys-in-blue, Ishan Porel, Kamlesh Nagarkoti, Shiva Singh and Anukul Roy took two wickets each while Shivam Mavi grabbed one.
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Russian President Putin says India, Russia collaboration not directed against anyone
New Delhi (PTI): The India-Russia collaboration is not directed against any country and it is solely aimed at safeguarding the national interests of the two sides, Russian President Vladimir Putin has said against the backdrop of Washington's aggressive approach towards New Delhi and Moscow.
In the context of India's energy ties with Russia, Putin said certain "actors" dislike New Delhi's growing role in international markets in view of its close relations with Moscow and these elements are aiming to constrain India's influence for political reasons by imposing "artificial obstacles".
In an interview to India Today news channel that was released on Thursday evening, the Russian president, referring to Western sanctions against Moscow, said his country's energy cooperation with New Delhi largely "remains unaffected".
Putin landed in New Delhi this evening on a two-day visit to hold summit talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
ALSO READ: PM Modi presents copy of Gita in Russian to Putin
His trip comes at a time India-US relations are going through possibly the worst phase in the last two decades after Washington imposed a whopping 50 per cent tariff on Indian goods, including 25 per cent levies for New Delhi's procurement of Russian crude oil.
"Neither me nor Prime Minister Modi, despite certain external pressure we face, have never approached our collaboration to work against someone," the Russian president said in response to a question on Washington's aggressive approach.
"President Trump has his own agenda, his own goals, whereas we focus on ours -- not against anyone, but rather aimed at safeguarding our respective interests, India's and Russia's interests," he said.
Rejecting Washington's objection to India procuring crude oil from Russia, Putin said if the US has the right to buy Russian fuel, why "shouldn't India have the same privilege".
"As for India's purchase of energy resources from Russia, I would like to note and have already mentioned this once, the US itself still buys nuclear fuel from us for its own nuclear power plants," Putin said.
The Russian president also responded to a question on India lowering procurement of crude oil from Russia in view of Western sanctions on Moscow.
ALSO READ: Russian president Putin arrives in Delhi on 2-day visit
"Well, there is a certain decline in overall trade turnover during the first nine months of this year. This is just a minor adjustment. Overall, our trade turnover stands almost at the same level as before," he said.
"I can't give you exact monthly figures right now, but trade in petroleum products and crude oil, as well as the production of petroleum products for consumers of oil, Russian oil, is running smoothly in India," he said.
Putin also said that India cannot be treated the way it was several decades back.
"Prime Minister Modi is not someone who succumbs to pressure easily. The Indian people can certainly take pride in their leader. This is absolutely obvious," he said.
"His stance is unwavering and straightforward, without being confrontational. Our goal is not to provoke conflict; rather, we aim to protect our lawful rights. India does the same," he said.
On the Ukraine conflict, Putin said he believed the US is actively seeking a solution to this problem. "I am absolutely certain, with no doubt at all, he (Trump) sincerely aims for a peaceful resolution."
Putin said Trump genuinely wants to end the hostilities and prevent further loss of lives. "But there could also be political interests tied to ending the confrontation between Russia and Ukraine, or economic motives too."
On bilateral trade, Putin said over 90 per cent of "our transactions are already conducted in national currencies".
"While some complications arise due to the presence of numerous intermediaries, there are also solutions," he said.
The Russian president also complimented PM Modi's leadership.
"Our collaborative endeavours with Prime Minister Modi carry significant weight because they transcend our mutual ties," he said.
"Given its direct relevance to both nations, ensuring stability in key areas of engagement is crucial, as it helps secure the fulfilment of our objectives. Prime Minister Modi sets very challenging tasks for the country --and for himself in the first place, then for the administration, and eventually for the nation," he said.
The Russian president did not give a direct reply to a question on if India was looking at procuring additional batches of S-400 missile systems.
"India stands out as one of our reliable and privileged partners in this area. We are not merely selling something to India and India isn't merely buying something from us in the sphere of defence and security.
"It is a different level, a different quality of relations we have with India, and we value this. We see how India values this relationship too," he said.
Putin said Russia is not simply selling defence technology to India but it is sharing it with the country.
"It is a very rare thing to see in the sphere of military-technical cooperation. It speaks to the level of trust between the two countries and the level of trust between the two peoples.
"We have a broad portfolio indeed, including naval construction, rocket and missile engineering, and aircraft engineering," he added.
