Australia booked their place in the semi-finals of the Under-19 World Cup with a hard-fought 22-run win over West Indies in Harare, driven by a captain’s knock from Oliver Peake. The left-hander anchored the innings with a composed 109 off 117 balls, guiding Australia to a formidable 314 for 7 in their Super Six clash. West Indies threatened to pull off a memorable chase through half-centuries from Zachary Carter (64) and skipper Joshua Dorne (62), but they faltered at the death to finish on 292 for 9, reports Live Cricket Score.
After the West Indies chose to bowl at the HSC, Australian openers Will Malajczuk and Nitesh Samuel once again provided a solid platform. Malajczuk continued his attacking form as the pair brought up a 50-run stand inside seven overs. The partnership ended at 73 in the ninth over when Malajczuk fell for 48. Steven Hogan departed cheaply soon after, handing R’Jai Gittens his second wicket.
Samuel then found the ideal partner in Peake, and the duo stitched together an 85-run stand for the third wicket at a healthy pace. Samuel went past his fifty, but West Indies managed to apply the brakes, eventually inducing his dismissal for 56. Peake reached his own half-century in the following over and joined forces with wicketkeeper-batter Alex Lee Young (45).
The pair began to accelerate between overs 31 and 40, finding boundaries with increasing regularity and setting the stage for a strong finish. Young fell in the 41st over, but Peake carried on, adding 76 runs in the final nine overs with Jayden Draper. Jakeem Pollard struck in back-to-back overs to remove Draper and Aryan Sharma, but Peake brought up his century in style, launching a six straight down the ground in the final over before being run out off the last ball.
West Indies responded with intent. Openers Tanez Francis and Carter attacked from the outset, with Carter in particular dealing in boundaries as the 50-run stand came up inside six overs. Carter raced to a 29-ball fifty, and the West Indies reached 84 inside the first 10 overs. Charles Lachmund broke the partnership by trapping Francis LBW, but the momentum continued as Carter and Jewel Andrew pushed the score past 100 by the 14th over.
Naden Cooray struck with his first ball to dismiss Carter, much to the batter’s frustration. Andrew followed in the 27th over after a well-made 44. Kunal Tilokani and Dorne then steadied the innings, batting for nearly 14 overs and picking up the occasional boundary, though a series of quiet overs saw the required rate steadily climb. Dorne eventually brought up his fifty off 81 balls as the contest edged towards a tense finish.
With 83 needed from the final 10 overs, Lachmund removed Tilokani before Hayden Schiller accounted for Dorne, forcing two new batters to the crease. The equation tightened to 59 off 30 balls when Jonathan van Lange launched a brief counterattack, smashing 22 runs across two overs. But Australia closed in swiftly—Lachmund claimed his third wicket as Shaquan Belle skied one to long-on, and Aryan Sharma struck twice in quick succession to remove van Lange and Gittens.
Lachmund capped a fine spell by dismissing Vitel Lawes in the final over to complete a four-wicket haul, sealing Australia’s unbeaten march into the final four.
Brief scores:
Australia 314/7 in 50 overs (Oliver Peake 109, Nitesh Samuel 56; Jakeem Pollard 2-37, R’Jai Gittens 2-45)
beat
West Indies 292/9 in 50 overs (Zachary Carter 64, Joshua Dorne 62; Charles Lachmund 4-66, Aryan Sharma 2-47)
by 22 runs
