What began as a Youth ODI in Rajkot turned into a race against the clock, a weather bulletin, and finally a T20-style shootout that showcased the next line of Indian batting talent.
Hours of steady rain, repeated inspections and a looming 1:47 p.m. cut-off threatened to wipe out the opening game of the India–Australia Under-19 series at the Niranjan Shah Stadium. Covers stayed on, the 30-yard circle held pockets of water, and the skies refused to clear. Parents who had flown in from Australia – including those of “home boy” Neel Patel, back in Gujarat as an Australia U-19 player – sat through a long, anxious morning.
The umpires waited. The groundstaff worked. The rain toyed with everyone.
Eventually, the format blinked first. What was supposed to be a Youth ODI was trimmed down to a T20, with India winning the toss and opting to bat. From that moment, the day changed character. The slog of waiting turned into a sprint.
Sehwag surname back on a scoreboard
Aaryavir Sehwag walked out with captain Lakshya Rajesh Raichandani to open for India U-19, and the first over from Kasey Barton carried an echo from another era. Three dots to start, then a punch through the field.
“Sehwag off the mark with a four.” A nostalgic line, this time for a new generation.
Aaryavir gave India the start it needed in a shortened game, moving to 16 off 14 with three boundaries as India reached 20 without loss in two overs and 25/0 after three. By four overs, the total was 31/0 – a platform, not a blaze, but enough to calm nerves after a disrupted morning.
Raichandani joined in with his first boundary in the second over, but his stay ended just as India seemed set for a commanding PowerPlay. On 15 off 15, with two fours to his name, the captain miscued and Eli Brain had him caught. India 65/2 after nine overs, the innings nudged off its early rhythm.
Australia hits back, then India counter-punches
Will Byrom tightened the screws. A quiet eighth over for Australia gave them a breather after India’s bright start. Then came the breakthrough spell that dragged the visitors fully into the contest.
Byrom removed Kushagra Ojha for 16 off 14, India slipping to 74/3 at the 10-over mark. Spencer Green then trapped Arjun Rajput lbw for 15 off 8 – a cameo with a six and a four, cut short just as it threatened to flare. At 89/4 in 12 overs, the scorecard told a familiar T20 story: good base, danger of waste.
Australia had seized momentum. The pitch, under covers for so long, was offering just enough to keep the bowlers interested. One more wicket and India’s innings might have drifted to something middling.
Instead, it ignited.
Dravid and Chauhan light up Rajkot
Anvay Dravid arrived with a single to get going. Then he and Yashbardhan Chauhan tore up the script.
First, Dravid found his range with a four in the 13th over off Byrom as India crossed 100. The real damage came next. Spencer Green ran in for the 14th, and Chauhan met him with a clean, towering six off the first ball. A single later, Dravid launched his first six of the day. The over snowballed from there.
Twenty-two runs. Chauhan closed it with two crisp fours, and suddenly the scoreboard roared: 122/4 in 14 overs. The pressure Australia had carefully built evaporated in six deliveries.
Dravid then went after Eli Brian, adding another six in the 15th over as India moved to 134/4. The pair turned a precarious platform into a launchpad, taking calculated risks and forcing the bowlers off their lengths.
By the time the 18th over ended, Dravid had hammered 38 off just 18 balls, with three sixes and two fours, before Brian finally hit back and bowled him. His dismissal at 159/5 stopped a surge, not the innings.
Chauhan ensured it stayed that way.
Chauhan’s finish caps India’s surge
Yashbardhan Chauhan controlled the closing phase with the composure of a seasoned finisher. He kept finding the fence, picking gaps, and turning half-chances into boundaries. A late over from Byrom disappeared for eight, another boundary added to the tally.
In the final over, Chauhan reached a superb fifty – 54 off 34 balls – an innings stitched with five fours and two sixes. Australia finally removed him in the last over, but by then the damage was done. India had surged to 182/6 in their 20 overs, taking eight runs from the final set of six.
From 89/4 to 182/6, the back ten overs belonged to Dravid and Chauhan, with vital support from the earlier cameos. On a day when the rain nearly won, India’s young batters made sure the crowd – and the travelling families – had something substantial to watch.
Now it’s over to Australia’s next generation. Can they chase down 183 under lights after a day spent under umbrellas, or will India’s bowlers turn this rain-shortened opener into a statement win for the home side?
