Sarfaraz Khan's brilliant all-round showing helped the Indian Under-19 team crush South Africa U-19 by 201 runs in the final to win the Quadrangular Series in Visakhapatnam, on Saturday.
Put in to bat, India made 267 for six in their 50 overs before bundling out the South Africans for a paltry 66 in 28.1 overs.
Mumbai wonderkind Sarfaraz starred for the hosts with an unbeaten 67 before he took a couple of wickets with the ball.
It was a near-perfect performance by the Indians, who suffered just one loss during the tournament, also featuring Australia and Zimbabwe.
India did not make the best of starts with opener Ankush Bains (1) departing when the team had just three runs on the board.
But the other opener Akhil Herwadkar (25) and skipper Vijay Zol (71), steadied the ship with a 51-run second wicket stand.
The partnership ended when Herwadkar was dismissed by Justin Dill in the 15th over, caught by Yaseen Valli. Herwadkar's 46-ball stay featured a four and a six.
The dismissal, however, did little to unsettle the hosts, who relied on steady contributions from their middle-order batsmen to build a good score.
Zol shared a 61-run stand with Ricky Bhui (46) before walking back to the pavillion after becoming Hayes van der Berg's only victim.
Following Zol's wicket, Sarfaraz, the 15-year-old who smashed a hundred against the same opponents earlier in the tournament, walked in and continued his fine form with his
58-ball knock, which included half a dozen fours.
He was given a good support lower down the order by Deepak Hooda (32).
For South Africa, Dill was the most successful bowler with three for 63 from his 10 overs.
Chasing the target, South Africa could not have imagined a worse start as half of their side found itself back in the pavillion in less than 20 overs with just 51 runs on the
board.
Number three Jason Smith (23) and skipper Yaseen Valli (13) were the only batsmen to touch the double-digit mark in a shambolic performance by the team's batsmen.
Three of their batsmen failed to get off the mark while the rest of them were literally stifled by the disciplined performance of the Indian bowlers.
The Indians shared the exploits in a superb bowling display during which Aamir Gani led with three for 18 in 5.1 overs.
Sarfaraz and Kuldeep Yadav picked up two wickets apiece rounding off a brilliant day for the hosts.
Brief scores:
India Under-19: 267/6 in 50 overs (Vijay Zol 71, Sarfaraz Khan 67 not out, Justin Dill 3/63).
South Africa Under-19: 66 all out in 28.1 overs (Aamir Gani 3/18).
Result: India Under-19 won by 201 runs.
Image: The India Under-19 team celebrate after winning the Quadrangular Series in Visakhapatnam.
Photograph: Andhra Cricket Association
