Continuing the winning momentum, the India U-19 team claims their third consecutive victory in the ongoing U-19 World Cup 2026. Captain Ayush Mhatre’s well-controlled half-century confirms a win over New Zealand on Saturday (January 24) at the Queens Sports Club in Bulawayo.

The India vs New Zealand U-19 World Cup 2026 match was arranged under heavy weather, which made the batters' task difficult by some margins. Batting first, New Zealand managed to score only 135 runs against their 10 wickets in 36.2 overs. Ambrish R. S. and Henil Patel claimed 4 wickets and 3 wickets, respectively, to keep the young Kiwis on the back foot.

The New Zealand bowler found no answers against the Indian batting lineup. The DRS method reduced the target to 130, and the total number of overs in the second was 37 overs, which was enough for the Indian batting line-up to claim the match.

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India U-19 skipper Ayush Mhatre, who was dealing with a bad patch, finally got his runs back in his bat.  Mhatre came to bat at number 3 and delivered a match-winning half-century. In 27 balls, the skipper delivered a 53-run knock, which will boost his and his team’s confidence for the upcoming assignments.

A winning effor from the captain Ayush Mhatre

In his 53-run innings, Ayush hit 6 sixes and 2 over boundaries to push his strike rate to 196.30. It is worth noting that he batted with a higher strike rate than the explosive opener Vaibhav Suryavanshi, who got 40 in 23 balls with 173.91. The initial impact Suryavanshi made helped India to reach the finish line quickly.

Ayush Mhatre brings up his half-century in style 💫#ICCMensU19WC | #INDvNZ 👉 LIVE NOW ➡️ https://t.co/u52XlDGEGo pic.twitter.com/2vvtuVbZFs

— Star Sports (@StarSportsIndia) January 24, 2026

Meanwhile, India won the match by 7 wickets, supported by the DLS method. Ambrish was named man of the match for his bowling figure of 4/29 (8).