The 11th edition of the biennial ICC Under 19 World Cup is set to commence on the 27th of January with 48 matches, featuring 16 teams, being scheduled to be played across 8 venues in Bangladesh.
The tournament will feature 9 Test playing nations as well as 7 Associate and Affiliate members, namely Afghanistan, Canada, Fiji, Ireland, Namibia, Nepal and Scotland.
The teams will participate in warm up games from the 22nd to the 25th of January while the tournament itself will commence with hosts Bangladesh taking on defending champions South Africa at the Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium in Chittagong while the big Finals will be held on the 14th of February at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium in Mirpur.
History
India and Australia, having won 3 Championships each, have been the most successful teams in the history off the Youth World Cup. Of the 8 top test playing nations, only New Zealand, Sri Lanka and West Indies are yet to lay hands on the coveted trophy.
The tournament has featured many former international captains including Sanath Jayasuriya, Graeme Smith, Brian Lara and Inzamam-Ul-Haq as well as current stars like Virat Kohli, Angelo Mathews, Ben Stokes and Kane Williamson, among others. International Cricket’s most recent Test debutant, Kagiso Rabada, was a standout performer for the World Cup winning South African line-up at the last Youth World Cup, held in 2014.
The Groups
Group A
Featuring defending champions South Africa, hosts Bangladesh, Scotland and Namibia, Group A promises some interesting matchups. South Africa, being defending champions, look good to top the group, however, they will have to overcome a strong Bangladeshi unit to do so. Although unlikely, Scotland is also capable of springing a surprise in the group while Namibia will face a very stiff task to keep up with the other teams.
Group B
At first glance, this looks like the toughest group of the competition with two-time champions Pakistan coming up against Sri Lanka, Afghanistan and Canada. Both Afghanistan will surely push the two powerhouses Pakistan and Sri Lanka to the limit as they look to emulate the success of their senior team, after finishing in 7th place at the last tournament. Canada, who qualified ahead of USA and Bermuda, has nothing to lose as they go up against 3 genuinely good teams.
Group C
England will be going up against West Indies, Zimbabwe and tournament newbies Fiji. Although England and West Indies go into the tournament as favorites to top the group, the conditions may prove to be their biggest obstacle. Overall this does seem like the most open group in the tournament, with none of the teams really having hit their straps yet.
Group D
The group of death…. Or so it was called until Cricket Australia decided to withdraw their team due to security concerns. It is more than likely that both India and New Zealand breathed a sigh of relief at this piece of news; the three time champions’ last minute exit making way for Ireland, who could most likely be under-prepared for a tournament of this magnitudeNepal, the 4th team of the group will fancy their chances against Ireland and will be hoping to ruffle some feathers when they come up against India and New Zealand.
