India vs Afghanistan U19 Semi-Final: Raichandani's 93 Sends India Into Asia Cup Final vs Pakistan

India vs Afghanistan U19 turned out to be a one-sided semi-final. India's Under-19 side beat Afghanistan by eight wickets at Al Amerat in Oman on Thursday, 12 November 2026, chasing 228 in just 36.5 overs to reach the final of the ACC Men's U19 Asia Cup. Their opponents on Saturday, 14 November, will be Pakistan, who thrashed Bangladesh in the other semi-final.

Scorecard summary

• Afghanistan U19: 227 for 8 in 50 overs (Noman Sarafzai 51, Faisal Rahimi 51, Sohail Khan 36; Ishan Sood 3-43, Aryan Savsani 2 wickets)
• India U19: 230 for 2 in 36.5 overs (Lakshya Raichandani 93, VK Vineeth 57*, Aaryavir Sehwag 51, Yashbardhan Chauhan 16*)
• Result: India U19 won by 8 wickets
• Player of the match: Lakshya Raichandani

Sood and the bowlers set it up

Afghanistan won the toss and chose to bat, but India kept taking wickets through the first 20 overs. Noman Sarafzai and Faisal Rahimi both made half-centuries to steady the innings, and captain Sohail Khan chipped in with 36 off 44 balls, but India's bowlers hit their lengths well at the death too.

Fast bowler Ishan Sood led the way with 3 for 43 and Aryan Savsani took two wickets. Kavya Patel, Yashbardhan Chauhan and Arjun Rajput had one each. Raichandani later singled out the middle-overs spin for praise, saying the slow bowlers "bowled really well" to keep the scoring rate in check.

Raichandani and Sehwag kill the chase early

The chase was never in doubt once the openers got going. Raichandani was the aggressor, hitting 13 fours and a six in his 93 off 90 balls, while Aaryavir Sehwag played the anchor role for 51 off 57 balls. The pair put on 117 for the first wicket before Sehwag fell soon after reaching his fifty.

VK Vineeth then added 77 for the second wicket with his captain. Raichandani fell short of a hundred, but Vineeth finished unbeaten on 57 and ended the match with a four and a six off successive balls from Noor Ali, with Chauhan 16 not out at the other end.

"Definitely disappointed, but the team got over the line, that's what matters," Raichandani said after the game, adding that he was just trying to "play freely" and read the situation.

Aaryavir Sehwag's tournament so far

Sehwag's fifty took his tournament tally to 303 runs in four innings: 70 not out against Nepal, 22 against Pakistan, a match-winning 160 against the UAE and 51 in the semi-final. India's only defeat came in the group game against Pakistan, when Arjun Rajput's 107 was matched by Hamza Zahoor's hundred and Pakistan won by three wickets.

Pakistan crush Bangladesh in the other semi

Pakistan reached the final with a nine-wicket win over Bangladesh. Fast bowler Rizwanullah took a maiden five-wicket haul (5 for 30) as Bangladesh were bowled out for 138 in 31.4 overs, and openers Usman Khan (64 not out) and Hayam Khan (69) put on 123 to finish the chase in 21.5 overs.

What's next

The final is on Saturday, 14 November 2026, at the Al Amerat Cricket Ground in Oman, starting 10:30 am IST. It is a repeat of the last U19 Asia Cup final in Dubai in December 2025, which Pakistan won by 191 runs. For the full squad list, see our India U19 Asia Cup squad guide, and for the latest scores visit our live scores page.

Sources: ESPNcricinfo match reports, Cricbuzz scorecard and post-match interviews, PTI.