A thrilling final over chase saw Gilchrist XI romp home by three wickets against Ponting XI chasing a total of 154 in the BBL Pathways curtain-raiser at The Gabba on Friday.

The presence of the champions at the previous two editions of the ICC U19 Cricket World Cup – the Windies (2016) and South Africa (2014) apart from host New Zealand and Kenya make Group A one of the groups to watch in the preliminary stage.

South Africa and Zimbabwe players have not only found the ICC U19 Cricket World Cup a great training ground but also an opportunity to make friends, as the event, which replicates a major tournament experience in terms of organization and playing facilities, brings together players from different parts of the world.

India captain Virat Kohli and New Zealand skipper Kane Williamson stated that success at ICC U19 World Cup played a huge role in shaping their career.

The ICC U19 Cricket World Cup has developed into an elegant event that showcases the best of the next generation and is acknowledged as the graduating school for top-class cricketers around the world.

Cricket Australia (CA) has today announced Australia’s 15-player squad to compete at the 2018 ICC Under 19 Cricket World Cup in New Zealand.

The Papua New Guinea Garamuts have finished with a perfect win record at the 2018 ICC Under 19 Cricket World Cup – East Asia-Pacific Qualifier 2017 in Samoa after their final match against Vanuatu was washed out without a ball bowled.

Keacy Carty scored his maiden Under-19 fifty and added unbeaten 69 runs with Keemo Paul to help West Indies chase down 146 in the final over against India in Mirpur and claim the U-19 World Cup for the first time in history.

Fifties from Shimron Hetmyer and Shamar Springer helped West Indies prevail over Bangladesh in a closely fought contest in the semi-final of the ICC Under-19 World Cup to book a place in the final which will be played against India.

Riding on fifties from Anmolpreet Singh and Sarfaraz Khan India posted a target of 268 runs for Sri Lanka and went on to bowl them out for just 170 runs to secure their place in the finals of the ICC Under-19 World Cup with a 97-run win in the semi-final in Mirpur.

A flamboyant century from Umair Masood went in vain as West Indies, guided by fifties from Tevin Imlach and Shimron Hetmyer, romped home to a five-wicket victory over Pakistan to qualify for the semi-finals of the ICC Under-19 World Cup in Bangladesh.

Wanidu Hasaranga inflicted heavy damage on the England batting lineup with a three-wicket haul after which Avishka Fernando scored a fluent 95 to help Sri Lanka chase down 185 with six wickets in hand in the quarter-finals of the ICC Under-19 World Cup encounter in Mirpur.

Mayank Dagar and Anmolpreet Singh shared six wickets between them after Rishabh Pant scored a sparkling century as India went on to defeat Namibia by a massive 197-run margin in Fatullah to reach the semi-finals of the ICC Under-19 World Cup.

Riding on Karim Janat's knock of 156 runs, Afghanistan comprehensively routed Fiji by 226 runs while Zimbabwe completed an easy six-wicket victory over Canada to advance in the ninth place play-off quarter-finals of the ICC U-19 World Cup in Bangladesh.

Hasan Mohsin scored a run-a-ball 86 and contributed with two wickets as well to help Pakistan defend 212 runs against Sri Lanka and secure the top position in Group B of the ICC Under-19 World Cup.

In a controversial end to one of the most thrilling contest of the ICC Under-19 World Cup, Keemo Paul mankaded the final Zimbabwe wicket to secure a two-run victory for West Indies in the Group C encounter that allowed them to reach the quarter-finals.

England secured their third consecutive victory and reached the quarter-finals by beating Zimbabwe by 129 runs whereas Fiji were bundled out for 78 by West Indies in a chase of 341 runs in the Group C encounters of the ICC Under-19 World Cup in Bangladesh.

Riding on a hundred from Nazmul Hossain Shanto, Bangladesh handed a 114-run defeat to Scotland and qualified for the next round while Namibia confirmed a quarterfinal berth by knocking South Africa out of the tournament with a thrilling two-wicket victory in the group A encounters of the ICC U-19 World Cup in Bangladesh.

India and Nepal booked their berth in the quarterfinals of the ICC U-19 World Cup in Bangladesh with back-to-back convincing victories in their Group D encounters by handing New Zealand and Ireland respectively their second consecutive defeats in the tournament.

Sri Lanka managed to defeat Afghanistan in a low scoring encounter to top the group while Pakistan completed an easy seven-wicket victory as both the teams from Group B qualified for the quarterfinals of the ICC U-19 World Cup in Bangladesh.