India faced Pakistan in the final of the U19 Asia Cup in Dubai on Sunday (December 21) but suffered a humiliating defeat by 191 runs. In reply to the total of 347/8 posted by the Pakistani team, Ayush Mhatre’s men could only manage to score 156 in 26.2 overs.
There were high hopes from the likes of 14-year-old Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Vihaan Malhotra and Abhigyan Kundu, along with Mhatre in the final, but all of them failed to deliver in the match that mattered the most.
During the final between the age group teams of India and Pakistan, players from both teams got engaged in verbal fights on multiple occasions, several videos of which are going viral on the internet.
Former Pakistan skipper Sarfaraz Ahmed, who was the mentor of Pakistan’s U19 side in the eight-team tournament, after the final, accused Indian players of misconduct during the summit clash.
“India’s behaviour during the game was not appropriate, and their conduct was against the spirit of cricket,” Sarfaraz said.
“Despite that, we celebrated our victory with sportsmanship. Cricket should always be played in the right spirit; what India did reflects their own actions,” he added.
And a day after Sarfaraz’s comments made headlines, Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chief Mohsin Naqvi said that he would approach the International Cricket Council (ICC) about the ‘proactive behaviour’ of Indian players.
Naqvi, while speaking to reporters on Monday at a reception for the Pakistan U19 team hosted by Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, accused Indian players of provoking Pakistani cricketers and said that PCB will ‘formally’ approach the ICC to urge the board to keep sport and politics separate.
“Indian players kept provoking Pakistani players during the U-19 Asia Cup final,” Naqvi said.
“Pakistan will formally inform the ICC about the incident. Politics and sports should always be kept separate,” he added.
BCCI to seek ‘explanation’ from Mhatre
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) will reportedly sort an ‘explanation’ from India U-19 captain Ayush Mhatre and the team’s head coach Hrishikesh Kanitkar for the team’s runners-up finish in the U-19 Asia Cup.
According to Cricbuzz, the decision was made during the board’s Apex Council meeting on Monday (December 22), where the members felt the need for a ‘review’.