Yashasvi Jaiswal is the cream of the crop in U-19 World Cup

With unparalleled records in batting, the teenager bagged the Player of the Tournament award.

Yashasvi Jaiswal was named Player of the Tournament in the ICC Under-19 World Cup. Photo: BCCI/Twitter

Yashasvi Jaiswal was named the Player of the Tournament in the ICC Under-19 World Cup for his scintillating run of form that saw him emerge as the leading run-getter of the tournament, which led India to the final against Bangladesh at Potchefstroom in South Africa on Sunday.

In the final that India U-19s lost to Bangladesh by three wickets, Yashasvi Jaiswal scored 88 runs and was the standout batsman of the low-scoring match that saw his side crumble from 156/3 to 177 all out.

Opening the innings, the left-handed Yashasvi Jaiswal made a steady start to his innings, forging a 94-run stand for the second wicket with Tilak Varma but it soon went downhill thereafter, particularly when Shoriful Islam dismissed the in-form batsman.

The southpaw took 121 balls for his effort and hit 8 fours and a six during the course of his innings. It was his fourth straight fifty-plus score and followed the century he managed against Pakistan in the semi-final. It was the second time a Mumbai batsman had racked up a fifty in an Under-19 World Cup final after Sarfaraz Khan did so against West Indies in 2016.

The final innings took the 18-year-old Yashasvi Jaiswal's tally in the Under-19 World Cup to 400 runs, 114 more than the next best, scored at an average of 133.33 in the six matches. He managed four fifties and a century, and hit 39 fours and 10 sixes, all more than anyone else. His strike rate was 82.47.

"I really enjoyed the tournament, I had a good experience here in South Africa, how to play on these wickets," said the teenager, who has played in the inaugural season of the T20 Mumbai league. "I really enjoyed it. I needed to play my game, that was it. I keep thinking about what I need to play next, and I just worry about my process."

Along with his runs, he also took three wickets in the Under-19 World Cup, all of which provided crucial breakthroughs. One of the wickets came in the final where he dismissed Bangladesh top-scorer Parvez Hossain Emon for 47 to reduce the opposition to 143/7 with another 27 needed for the victory, thus giving his side a chance.

Bangladesh, however, managed to seal the tense match with 23 balls and three wickets to spare.

Yashasvi Jaiswal was also named as one of the picks in the ICC U-19 World Cup Team of the Tournament, selected by a five-member adjudication panel, which included former cricketers-turned-commentators Ian Bishop and Rohan Gavaskar.

"Few will question the Indian openers' claims to Player of the Tournament honours after he played a crucial role in leading his side all the way to the final," read a statment on the ICC website.

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