KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia, CMC:
THE YOUNG West Indies are the ninth-best youth side in the world.
This followed Jason Dawes and Darren Bravo playing key roles in a seven-wicket victory over Young Nepal in a low-scoring, rain-affected Plate final of the ICC Youth World Cup, yesterday at Bayuemas Oval.
In pursuit of 75 for victory in a match reduced to 27 overs-a-side, YWI reached their target with 76 balls to spare.
The victory was some consolation for Shamarh Brooks' side after its failure to qualify for the Super League stage of the competition.
Having been placed alongside Young India and Young South Africa, the two teams that will contest the final today at the Kinrara Academy Oval, as well as Young Papua New Guinea in the group stage, it was always going to be a severe challenge for YWI to finish in the top half of the competition.
YWI, however, put this disappointment behind them and stamped their authority when they made light work of Young Nepal, the defending ICC YWC Plate champion and consistently the top ICC Associate youth team.
Pick of the bowlers
Dawes was the pick of the YWI bowlers with four wickets for 18 runs from his quota of six overs which later earned him the Man-of-the-Match award, as Young Nepal were dismissed for 74 in 25.3 overs. Bravo, brother of senior West Indies all-rounder Dwayne Bravo, supported with three for nine from five overs.
Only two Young Nepal batsmen reached double figures as the 18 extras YWI conceded led the way. Sagar Khadka's 17 was the top score from the batsmen and his brother, Paras Khadka, the Young Nepal captain, made 12.
The younger Bravo then hastened YWI to the end, when he hit three fours and one six in 24 not out from 15 balls.
Kieran Powell had given YWI a typically flourishing start with two fours and a six in 24 from 16 balls and he shared 33 for the first wicket with Adrian Barath, who made 15.
Amrit Bhattarai managed to snare two for 25 from his quota of six overs before the final passage.
In the Super League semi-final, which was curtailed by rain the previous day, Young South Africa ruined Young Pakistan's plans for a hat-trick of ICC YWC titles with a 98-run victory at Kinrara Oval.The two sides had arrived at the ground in torrential rain, and most of the morning was spent watching it bounce off the covers.
It stopped 1 3/4 hours past the scheduled start and play was possible about half an hour after the covers were peeled away.
More overs lost
It meant that no more overs were lost to the Pakistan batsmen, and they resumed on yesterday's reserve day on 86 for two, needing a further 166 to win from another 28.1 overs.
They got off to the worst possible start when Umar Amin was stumped off the first legitimate ball of the day from Pieter Malan and Roy Adams struck a vital blow for South Africa when he had Ali Asad lbw for five.
From there, Pakistan never really looked like winning, and the way the South Africans strutted around the field, it was clear the momentum had shifted.
Meanwhile, old rivals Australia and England went head to head in the fifth-place play-off but rain had the final say and the match was abandoned before a result was possible.
For the record, Australia made 106 for seven, after the match had been reduced to 24 overs-a-side. The English, however, got the bragging rights, since they had a superior net run rate and finished fifth in the competition ahead of their sixth place rivals.
