Batsman Shacoya Thomas - file

JOHOR, Malaysia (CMC):

YOUNG WEST Indies were hardly made to sweat when they brought Young Papua New Guinea (PNG) back down to earth with a six-wicket defeat yesterday that put them in the Plate Final of the ICC Youth World Cup.

Chasing a modest victory target of 90 for victory, YWI reached their target with 207 balls to spare in the second Plate semi-final at the Institute Perguruan Temeng-gong Ibrahim.

YWI had dismissed YPNG for 89 in 36.5 overs after the Asia-Pacific side chose to bat on another hard, easy-paced pitch.

The victory meant that YWI have advanced to the Plate Final against Young Nepal on Saturday at Bayuemas Oval in the Malaysia capital of Kuala Lumpur.

Kieran Powell hit a run-a-ball 37 that included four fours and one six and Adrian Barath scored 26 from 27 balls that contained two fours and two sixes to add 46 for the second wicket and hasten YWI to the target.

Earlier, the YWI new-ball pair of Delorn Johnson and Shacoya Thomas recovered from some early indiscipline to snare the YPNG opening pair of Tanti Heni and Alfred Amini respectively. Johnson added the scalp of Tony Ura for 11 and the wickets fell steadily after his dismissal as YPNG lost their last seven wickets for 44 runs.

Man of the Match

YWI captain Shamarh Brooks earned the Man-of-the-Match award for his spell of two wickets for nine runs from seven. Johnson and Nkrumah Bonner also collected two wickets apiece, but YWI vice captain Steve Jacobs returned the notable figures of 10-5-11-1.

The ICC Youth World Cup is a vital part of the ICC development programme and has proven to be a great breeding ground for some of the best players in the world.

Many of the future stars of the game experienced their first true international exposure at this tournament and players such as Brian Lara, Michael Atherton, Yuvraj Singh, Inzamam-ul-Haq, Chris Cairns, Michael Clarke, Graeme Smith and Sanath Jayasuriya have used the event as a stepping stone to full international honours.