The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) President Sourav Ganguly congratulated the India U-19 team after the 'Boys in Blue' triumphed to win the fifth U-19 World Cup. The final played in Antigua saw Yash Dhull's men edge past England by four wickets to win the final. Ganguly wished the support staff who were the unsung heroes in India's triumph against England. The BCCI President took to his Twitter handle to congratulate the team.
Ganguly's tweet
"Congratulations to the under 19 team and the support staff and the selectors for winning the world cup in such a magnificent way...The cash prize announced by us of 40 lakhs is a small token of appreciation but their efforts are beyond value .. magnificent stuff..@bcci," Ganguly's tweet read.
The Indian team kept their unbeaten streak intact in the tournament winning all six encounters, despite having initial struggles with Covid-19. The final was the junior team's fourth on the bounce and fifth in six editions. The young players had all the ingredients to form a successful recipe, although they struggled in the final but eventually a superb combined performance made sure that the lads had enough in the tank to secure the victory.
Jay Shah on Twitter
BCCI secretary Jay Shah also congratulated the team on Twitter and rewarded them with Rs 40 lakhs per player. This was India's fifth title at the junior level after winning in 2000, 2008, 2012 and 2018. History suggests that U-19 players have gone on to achieve big things in the future. Prominent figures like Yuvraj Singh, Virat Kohli were all successful at junior level before they went on to succeed in bigger tournaments.
The victory in the final was sealed with a six by Dinesh Bana, reminding the final of the 2011 World Cup when Dhoni earned the 2011 ODI World Cup. Star players like Vicky Ostwal, Dhull, Bawa are already attracting plenty of headlines in the country.
Ravichandran Ashwin has already predicted that players from the current U-19 team will get big bids in the upcoming auctions of the Indian Premier League (IPL). Ashwin tipped Rajvardhan Hangargekar to go big and attract five to ten bidders.
