WINDHOEK, Namibia (CMC) — A promising start evaporated under the Windhoek sun as the West Indies Under-19s suffered a heavy 138-run defeat to a disciplined Afghanistan side in the ICC Men’s Under-19 World Cup Group D clash on Sunday.

Chasing 263 for victory, the Caribbean innings never found momentum, crumbling to 124 all out.

The day began with a fight, as West Indies spinner Vitel Lawes and left-arm seamer Jakeem Pollard shared six wickets to peg back the Afghan batters.

However, a resilient middle-order partnership allowed Afghanistan to post a commanding 262 for 6 from their 50 overs, a total that proved insurmountable.

The sole bright spark with the bat was wicketkeeper-batter Jewel Andrew, who provided stubborn resistance with a gritty top score of 57. His knock, however, was a lone hand in a faltering chase.

Speaking after the match, Andrew pinpointed a crucial period when the game slipped away.

“I think the powerplay was good for us, and we tend to pull it back in the last few overs, but we took too long to adjust to the surface and that kind of let the score get away a bit.”

He elaborated on the challenging conditions, which he felt his side should have handled better. “The wicket was slow, low as well, and that is something that we normally play with in the Caribbean. I think we took too long to adjust to something that we know, and that kind of hampered us.”

Andrew also suggested a tactical misstep in the field, hinting that the introduction of spin could have come sooner. “I think we planned to bowl a certain way, but we could have strayed from the plan a bit earlier. We saw today that spin worked out for us, so that’s something we could try to implement coming into the next game.”

Despite the heavy loss, the young keeper insisted the spirit within the camp remains unbroken. When asked if energy and self-belief were still intact, Andrew was emphatic.

“Definitely. We look to each other for answers. The coaches set guides for us to capitalise on, and it’s just for us to go back and reflect and come for the next one.”

He affirmed that the team’s preparation had been solid and stressed the need for confidence moving forward.

“Our preparations coming into this game were good, so it’s just about remaining confident going into the next one, and hopefully we can get over the line.”

SCOREBOARD

Afghanistan U-19

Khalid Ahmadzai c Francis b Lawes 34

Omar Sadat b Pollard 88

Faisal Shinozada b Lawes 4

Uzairullah Niazai c Van Lange b Lawes 12

Mahboob Khan (c)† c Apple b Pollard 86

Azizullah Miakhil b Pollard 21

Nooristani Omarzai not out 3

Abdul Aziz not out 5

Did not bat: Khatir Stanikzai, Roohullah Arab,

Wahidullah Zadran

Extras (lb3, w6) 9

Total (six wickets; 50 overs) 262

Fall of wickets: 1-86, 2-90, 3-110, 4-187,

5-225, 6-256

Bowling: Pollard 10-2-39-3, Belle 8-0-45-0, van

Lange 7-0-53-0, Miller 5-0-41-0, McKenzie 10-

0-33-0, Lawes 10-0-48-3

West Indies U-19

Tanez Francis c Stanikzai b Zadran 9

Zachary Carter b Zadran 3

+Jewel Andrew c Miakhil b Stanikzai 57

*Joshua Dorne b Zadran 0

Shamar Apple lbw Omarzai 5

Jonathan van Lange c Shinozada b Omarzai 9

Matthew Miller c Khan b Omarzai 2

Shaquan Belle c Ahmadzai b Stanikzai 9

Micah McKenzie b Stanikzai 5

Jakeem Pollard not out 11

Vitel Lawes c Niazai b Omarzai 9

Extras (b1, w4) 5

Total (10 wickets; 33.2 overs) 124

Fall of wickets: 1-12, 2-21, 3-21, 4-51, 5-75,

6-80, 7-96, 8-101, 9-105, 10-124.

Bowling: Aziz 5-0-27-0, Zadran 9-1-36-3,

Omarzai 7.2-2-16-4, Arab 7-0-24-0, Stanikzai

5-2-20-3

Toss: Afghanistan U-19.

Result: Afghanistan U-19s defeat West Indies

U-19s by 138 runs.

Player-of-the-Match: Mahboob Khan

Umpires: Faisal Afridi, Shaun Haig

TV Umpire: Virender Sharma

Reserve Umpire: Iknow Chabi

Match Referee: Prakash Bhatt