As sports fans, we are often guilty of being over-obsessed with the exploits of the senior national sides, and remain largely unaffected by what’s happening with the younger age categories.
The ICC Under-19 Cricket World Cup, which concludes with the final between Pakistan and South Africa, has been a reminder why we should care more for youth tournaments.
The biggest attraction, obviously, is that one gets a crystal-ball view of the future of the game.
And there are many who have caught the eye. Players like Pakistan’s Imam-ul Haq, Sami Aslam and Karamat Ali; South Africa’s Kagiso Rabada and Yaseen Valli; India’s Sarfaraz Khan, Sanju Samson and Deepak Hooda, England’s Matthew Fisher and Ben Duckett; West Indies’ Nicolas Pooran; Australia’s Jake Doran and Sri Lanka’s Sadeera Samarawickerama are just some of the names who are sure to feature prominently in the coming years for their senior sides in different formats of the game.
But what is equally vital is the exposure that developing countries like the UAE have received.
It would not be wise to dilute the field of the men’s World Cup by offering more places to the Associate Members or qualifiers.
Apart from the schedule getting stretched, there will be too many one-sided matches. With that in mind, the U19 World Cup is the best way to introduce the newer cricketing nations to the pressures of a big tournament.
A couple of things need to be pointed out in praise of ICC. First, the firmness with which they handled disciplinary matters.
There were a few reprimands and suspensions, including one for the Indian captain Vijay Zol for audible abuse in their quarter-final loss to England.
Some may argue that the punishments are excessive, but they were as per ICC’s Code of Conduct, and the strict implementation was a perfect way to give these youngsters a message that there are things more important than winning in cricket.
The other was to play the semi-finals and final, and a few other matches under lights. It just gives these youngsters a better feel of what is in store for them in the near future.
The matches, barring a few, have all been extremely well competed. Hopefully, the final will be the icing on the cake.
