Pakistan muscle India in U19 Asia Cup 2025 final, Sameer Minhas stars in monumental victory

Dubai:

Pakistan defeated India by 191 runs in the final of the U19 Asia Cup at the ICC Academy Ground in Dubai. The Ayush Mhatre-led side was dominated in all three fronts of the game as Pakistan were clearly the superior side. India, on the other hand, looked clueless and it seemed that the team didn’t have a plan B in place. Particularly against Pakistan opener Sameer Minhas, who played a destructive knock of 172 runs off 113 balls.

He was ruthless right from the beginning, and that put pressure on India. Usman Khan and Ahmed Hussain supported him well for a while, scoring 35 and 56 runs, respectively. The remaining six batters scored a cumulative total of only 53 runs. That highlights the impact Sameer had in the match, as his blistering hundred helped the team post 347 runs on the board in the first innings, which, in many ways, cemented the fate of the match.

Chasing 348 runs was never an easy task but India started well. Vaibhav Suryavanshi dictated the terms, scoring 21 runs in the first over, but nothing went well after that. The 14-year-old departed, scoring 26 runs off 10 balls and was also involved in a controversy with Ali Raza after his dismissal. Notably, the pacer celebrated and ignited a heated chat with Suryavanshi, who, in response, pointed at his shoe, arguably making a derogatory comment. 

Wickets fell like a house of cards

Notably, captain Mhatre was the first one to bite the dust as the Chennai Super Kings opener made only two runs off seven balls. Aaron George soon followed suit, adding 16 runs. After Suryavanshi departed, the wickets fell like a house of cards as India were soon reduced to 68/5 and then 82/6 and were finally packed for 156 runs.

For Pakistan, Raza starred with the ball, picking up four wickets. However, it was Sameer who set the tone at the top of the order and changed the game for the team and eventually won his side the tournament.