U-19 World Cup Final 2026, ENG vs IND: Sooryavanshi’s match-winning blitz powers India to their sixth Under-19 World Cup crown.
Brief Scores: IND U19 411/9 (Vaibhav Sooryavanshi 175, Ayush Mhatre 53, James Minto 3/63) beat ENG U19 311 (Calen Falconer 115, RS Ambrish 3/56) by 100 runs.
Player of the match & tournament: Vaibhav Sooryavanshi- “Feeling really great. Can’t express. We had been preparing for this through the Asia Cup and the last six to seven months and I want to dedicate this award to the supporting staff. We just looked to follow the process in the final and play to our strength. I just know my skills and had the feel of contributing in big games.”
After their dominating chase against Afghanistan in the ICC Men’s U19 World Cup 2026 semifinal, India qualified for the final of the event. Subsequently, England also held their nerve for a close victory against Australia to reach the summit clash. The two unbeaten sides met each other in the final at the Harare Sports Club.
India’s captain, Ayush Mhatre, won the toss and decided to bat first. There was slightly more moisture on the surface compared to the semifinal. But it has been a trend at this venue for the surfaces to go flat in the second half of the contest.
The Blue Brigade retained the same winning playing XI. Meanwhile, England decided to bring Alex Green in for the fixture in place of Alex French.
Read More: India U-19 batter Abhigyan Kundu has all the makings to become a go-to man in crisis situations
Talking point: ‘Sooryavanshi-Tsunami’ hit England
Throughout the World Cup, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi got the starts but couldn’t convert them to the big scores. Bu, he found the final to be the perfect stage to shatter multiple records, leaving England helpless in the face of his 175-run knock on a difficult batting surface.
On the same track where Sooryavanshi hit 15 sixes, the rest of the line-up got just four. This reflects the left-handed batter’s sheer power and dominance.
Vaibhav Sooryavanshi’s 175 take India to record 411/9
After losing the semifinal’s centurion, Aaron George, in the fourth over, young Sooryavanshi took the centre-stage. The left-handed opening batter completed his fifty in just 32 balls before notching up his century in the blink of an eye. His journey from fifty to 100 was covered in just 23 deliveries. England kept trying different plans, but Sooryavanshi displayed his incredible muscle power, hitting the ball around the park.
The 14-year-old was finally dismissed for 175 runs in just 80 balls, with the help of 15 boundaries and as many sixes. India were 250/2 in the first half of the innings, before slowing down terribly. They got 161/7 in the last 25 overs at a run rate of 6.44. That was possible only because of Kanishk Chouhan’s unbeaten 37 runs in 20 balls. Ultimately, the runners-up from the previous edition finished with 411/9 in their allotted 50 overs.
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Caleb Falconer celebrates consolation century; India lift sixth title
Apart from losing Joseph Moores, England made a clinical start with the bat in the chase. Ben Mayes took on Khilan Patel’s opening over to smash the left-arm spinner for two fours and one six. But, Khilan had the last laugh, dismissing the batter for 45 runs in 28 balls.
And once England lost their captain Thomas Rew, it triggered a collapse. They lost four wickets for just three runs in mere nine balls as the India players started their pre-celebration. However, James Minto and Caleb Falconer put up a 92-run stand to delay the result. The latter celebrated his consolation century in 63 deliveries.
England eventually got bundled out for 311 as India won their sixth U19 World Cup title. It also became their third trophy in the last five editions, including two runners-up finishes.
Statistical highlights from IND vs ENG U19 World Cup 2026 final
- Vaibhav Sooryavanshi is the eighth India batter to register a fifty-plus score in a U-19 World Cup Final.
- Vaibhav Sooryavanshi hit 30 sixes in U-19 World Cup 2026. That’s the most sixes hit by an individual batter in a single edition of U-19 World Cup. South Africa’s Dewald Brevis held the record earlier with 18 sixes in U-19 World Cup 2022.
- Vaibhav Sooryavanshi & Ayush Mhatre added 142 runs in 90 balls for the second wicket, at a run rate of 9.46. This is now the second-fastest partnership for any wicket in a knockout fixture of the U-19 World Cup.
- Vaibhav Sooryavanshi is the sixth batter, and third India batter, to register a hundred in an U-19 World Cup Final.
- Vaibhav Sooryavanshi becomes the first batter to complete 100 sixes in Youth ODIs. He currently has 110 sixes in this format.
- Vaibhav Sooryavanshi scores the second-most runs (175) in an innings for India in Youth ODIs after Ambati Rayudu’s 177*.
- Vaibhav Sooryavanshi scored 175 off 80 balls at a strike rate of 218.75 in the Final today. This is the second-best SR for a completed hundred-plus innings in Youth ODIs.
- Vaibhav Sooryavanshi hit 15 sixes enroute his knock of 175(80) today. That’s the most sixes hit by an individual batter in a Youth ODI innings. He overtook his own record of 14 sixes in his knock of 171 against UAE U-19 last year.
- India posted the highest team total (411/9) in a knockout fixture of the U-19 World Cup.
- Ben Mayes ended up as the leading run-scorer (444) in U-19 World Cup 2026.
What’s next
With the end of the U19 World Cup 2026, the focus moves to the seniors for the upcoming T20 World Cup 2026 in India and Sri Lanka. The Suryakumar Yadav-led side will begin their campaign on February 7 against United States of America (USA) at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.
Read More: Know more about RS Ambrish, India U-19 all-rounder
Top Twitter Reactions from IND vs ENG, U19 World Cup 2026 Final, Harare
Congratulations to the U-19 Indian team for lifting the World Cup once again. Our domination in the age group cricket and beyond continues. Well done to the whole squad and the support staff. 👏🇮🇳
— Virat Kohli (@imVkohli) February 6, 2026
Other teenagers play normal cricket. Vaibhav Suryavanshi of Bihar's Samastipur plays book cricket which school kids play. 80 ball 175 with 15 fours and 15 sixes. He is from a different planet.
— Makarand Waingankar (@wmakarand) February 6, 2026
Vaibhav is here to stay. Was disappointed seeing people come all guns blazing against him for going through the ebbs and flows that any batter endures. Scoring a ton in an ICC final speaks of temperament more than talent. And temperament wins tournaments. #U19WorldCup2026
— Priyank Panchal (@PKpanchal09) February 6, 2026
T20 World Cup champions
— Harsha Bhogle (@bhogleharsha) February 6, 2026
Women's World Cup champions
U19 World Cup champions.
World Cup runners-up.
Indian cricket is in a very good place.
175 (80) in the U19 WC final, 15 fours and 15 sixes with 85.7% of his runs in boundaries. That’s absurd. This is a follow up to his 68(33) in the semis chasing a 300+ target. Vaibhav has owned the big stage like he's born for it. A prodigy with serious big match temperament.… pic.twitter.com/uIUEe9XXsO
— Ashwin 🇮🇳 (@ashwinravi99) February 6, 2026
Sooryavanshi Vaibhav 175 in 80 balls with 15 sixes. Have we seen the future of cricket? If he had stuck around even a 300 seemed possible. India is blessed, they keep getting world class batters.
— Mohammad Kaif (@MohammadKaif) February 6, 2026
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