Match report provided by the ECB.
England’s run to the final of the 2026 ICC U19s Men’s World Cup has ended with a 100-run defeat to India in Harare.
Middlesex batter Caleb Falconer struck a 63-ball century to showcase his quality, but it was not enough after India opener Vaibhav Sooryavanshi had earlier hit a record-breaking 175 from 80 balls.
The 14-year-old recorded 150 of his 175 runs in boundaries in his side’s 411 for nine.
Falconer led a valiant reply from the Young Lions, finishing with 115 from 67 balls, before he was last man out with the score 311 after 40.2 overs.
Ben Dawkins added 66 at the top of the order while Ben Mayes hit a quickfire 45 to finish as the tournament’s leading run-scorer with 444 at an average of 74.
Mayes’ Hampshire team-mate Manny Lumsden ended as the tournament’s leading wicket-taker, with 16, after he had Sooryavanshi – who was named Player of the Tournament - caught down the leg-side by captain Thomas Rew in the 26th over.
James Minto returned three for 63 as England’s bowlers fought back in the second half of the innings.
“It’s always going to be tough when a player like that gets going,” England Men U19s captain Thomas Rew said at the post-match presentation.
“He’s showed us before what he can do and we were scratching our heads a little bit. Today Vaibhav came off and fair play to him.
“It was a great effort from our batters. Caleb played an unbelievable innings and for Daws to get some runs too was great. That was a testament to the mindset of the team to try and chase that down.
“We were really excited that we could go out there and play our shots and have some fun. Unfortunately, we couldn’t get over the line, but we showed great fight.”
