Sachin Dhas (Photo Source: X/Twitter)
India edged past South Africa in the first semi-final of the Under 19 World Cup 2024 by two wickets as they chased down 245 in 48.5 overs. The chase wasn’t a walk in the park for the Men in Blue as they were left reeling at 32/4 in 11.2 overs. However, captain Uday Saharan (81 off 124) and Sachin Dhas (96 off 95) got involved in a massive stand of 171 (187) for the fifth wicket to stabilize the innings as India eventually won the game by two wickets.
The hero of the game was undoubtedly Dhas who scored a brilliant 96 (95) with the help of 11 fours and a six. The 19-year-old missed out on his second consecutive hundred of the tournament as he earlier scored 116 (101) in India’s last group game against Nepal in Bloemfontein.
Notably, Dhas hails from Beed, Maharashtra and left everyone in awe of his six-hitting prowess during an invitational U-19 tournament in Pune. The teenager’s six-hitting left the organisers so befuddled that they even checked the size of his bat to make sure that there was no foul play.
Sachin’s father Sanjay Dhas has named him after the legendary India cricketer Sachin Tendulkar who’s his second favourite cricketer after Sunil Gavaskar. In a conversation with Indian Express, Sanjay, who himself played cricket at the University level, revealed that he had planned to make his son a cricketer even before he was born.
Sanjay also revealed that he prepared turf wickets by borrowing money to train his son. However, keeping the wickets fresh due to the water crisis in Beed was a herculean task. Hence, he had to call up the water tanker every second or third day and credits Sachin’s coach Azhar who worked tirelessly to make the talented batter that he is today.
Sachin Dhas is the third-highest run scorer of U-19 World Cup 2024
Sachin’s mother, Surekha Das, is an Assistant Police Inspector (API) in Maharashtra Police and was a Kabaddi Player during her time. On the other hand, Sachin’s sister Pratiksha is preparing for USPC exams in Pune.
Meanwhile, following his consecutive match-winning knocks, Sachin Dhas is now the third-highest run scorer of the tournament with 294 runs from six innings at an average of 73.50 and a strike rate of 116.66. He will be eager to play another match-winning knock for his team in the final of the tournament on Sunday, February 11 at the same venue.
Also Read: Who is Musheer Khan? All you need to know about young batting sensation