Afghanistan are off to a good start in the match against India. In the first over of RS Ambrish, the openers Osman Sadat and Khalid Ahmadzai scored six runs. This included a boundary from Osman. A good over for Afghanistan. 

AFG U19 6/0 (1 overs)

The U19 World Cup 2026, semi-final match between India and Afghanistan finally begins. For Afghanistan, Osman Sadat and Khalid Ahmadzai have opened the proceedings. On the other hand, RS Ambrish will be bowling the first over for India. 

Players of both the teams are out on the field for their respective national anthems. The U19 World Cup 2026 match between India and Afghanistan shall begin shortly. Stay tuned with us. 

"The boys are really talented, they come prepared and stuff like that, but they're not really used to this bigger stage ​(playing in the WC). It's a step up, international cricket. (on the coaching philosophy). It's something where people like me can contribute very well. So it's all about the process and what process works for them, being aware of what works for them and they need to continue that because as they go higher up, there are many more distractions, doubts that many more people talking to you about the game, about everything else. So they need to stick to the process, be focused on what works for them. (on the team management) They totally do because both of these guys (Sunil Joshi and VVS Laxman) are very approachable and they are open to anybody who wants to talk anything about cricket. We all make it easy for the boys to just come over and talk to us," said Hrishikesh Kanitkar. 

Afghanistan U19 (Playing XI): Osman Sadat, Khalid Ahmadzai, Faisal Shinozada, Uzairullah Niazai, Mahboob Khan(w/c), Azizullah Miakhil, Abdul Aziz, Khatir Stanikzai, Roohullah Arab, Nooristani Omarzai, Wahidullah Zadran.

India U19 (Playing XI): Aaron George, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Ayush Mhatre(c), Vedant Trivedi, Vihaan Malhotra, Abhigyan Kundu(w), RS Ambrish, Kanishk Chouhan, Khilan Patel, Henil Patel, Deepesh Devendran

"Really happy with the toss. Wicket looks good as well. The boys are doing really well and the attitude they are showing on the field is really brilliant. We just need to play simple cricket and play to the potential today. We are playing the same team for us," said India skipper Ayush Mhatre. 

"We will bat first. Pitch looks good for batting, so we want to bat. Faisal Khan is a very good batter. He has performed very well for the team. We prepared well for this game and hopefully we will make it to the final as well. The wicket is good for batting and it will offer some help for the bowlers as well," said Afghanistan skipper Mahboob Khan. 

Afghanistan skipper Mahboob Khan wins the toss, opts to bat against India in the U19 World Cup 2026, semi-final match. 

Afghanistan too has had a fairly good tournament, winning four out of their five games, their only loss coming against Sri Lanka by four wickets. Going by form and overall composition, India will hold an edge over the Afghans in the knock-out game.

Five-time champions India sealed their place in the semifinals of the ICC Under-19 Men’s Cricket World Cup with a 58-run victory over arch-rivals Pakistan at the Queens Sports Club on Sunday, topping their Super Sixes group in the process.

Skipper Ayush Mhatre has been consistent with the ball in hand, picking up six wickets with his off-break from five games but there is room for improvement on the batting front. He managed just 99 runs from five games with 53 being his highest.

Wicket-keeper batter Abhigyan Kundu has been the star performer for India with the bat as the left-hander has so far amassed 199 runs from five games with two half centuries to his name. All-rounder Vihaan Malhotra (172 runs from 5 games) is the other Indian batter to look out for. He struck the lone century (109 not out) against Zimbabwe in group stages. 

14-year-old Vaibhav Suryavanshi will be eager to register a big score in the semi-final match against Afghanistan. The big-hitting opener (196 runs in 5 matches with 2 fifties) too has been in good form but the team management would want him to convert his half-centuries into three-figure scores.

India have had a great run in the tournament, having won all their five matches quite comfortably, including a 58-run win over arch-rivals Pakistan in the Super Six stage.

Unbeaten so far in the tournament, a confident and all-round India will be overwhelming favourites against Afghanistan in the semifinal. India are the most successful team in the history of the event, having annexed the title five times (2000, 2008, 2012, 2018, 2022), followed by Australia, who have won the trophy four times.

Hello and welcome to our live coverage of the U19 World Cup 2026, Semi-Final match between India and Afghanistan, straight from the Harare Sports Club, Harare. Stay tuned for all the live updates.