HARARE: Ben Mayes’ record 191 powered England to a crushing 252-run victory over Scotland, while Afghanistan continued their winning run with a resounding nine-wicket win against Tanzania in the U19 World Cup group stage fixtures.
Batting first, England racked up a massive 404-6 in their 50 overs, thanks to a monumental second wicket partnership between Joseph Moores and Ben Mayes.
After opener Ben Dawkins got out in the second over for five runs, Mayes joined Moores and forged an 188-run stand, which laid a foundation for a big total.
The pair batted briskly and kept the Scottish bowlers at bay with Mayes scoring his half-century on 32 balls. At this stage, the scorecard read 102-1.
Meanwhile, Dawkins also provided support from the other end and kept the scoreboard ticking.
The stand eventually culminated on the first ball of the 24th over as Moores got out after scoring 81 from 65, which was laced with four boundaries and five sixes.
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Despite the wicket, Mayes remained unfazed and stitched a couple of stands with middle-order batters.
There were some other brief contributions from England batters, but Ben Mayes remained dominant and posted a record score for the Three Lions in Youth ODIs.
He was eventually dismissed in the 45th over after amassing 191 from 117 balls. His record-breaking knock was peppered with 18 fours and eight sixes.
At the time of his dismissal, England’s scorecard read 354-5 in 45.2 overs.
For Scotland, Jake Woodhouse stood out with three wickets to his name.
In reply, Scotland could not get going and were bowled out for 152 in 44.5 overs.
After a positive 38-run start from the openers, Scotland lost their way and lost wickets in heaps.
Luke Hands and Alex Green combined to rattle the top order, with Caleb Falconer and Ralphie Albert cutting through the rest of the batting lineup.
Finlay Carter was the only silver lining for Scotland, who top scored with 34 from 55 with the aid of four boundaries.
Ethan Ramsay was the other batter to impress, who remained unbeaten on 20 from 23 balls. The right-hander struck four boundaries.
For England, all-rounder Caleb Falconer scalped three wickets.
Earlier, in a Group D fixture, Afghanistan sealed a nine-wicket victory over Tanzania.
Tanzania could not capitalize on the decision to bat first as Nooristani Omarzai led the bowling attack, skittling them for 85 in 36 overs.
Augustino Mwamele remained Tanzania’s top scorer with 14 goals.
For Afghanistan, it was Nooristani who wreaked havoc with the ball and tore through the opposition’s batting lineup.
The right-arm medium pacer returned with the figures of 5/9 in seven overs. Uzairullah Niazai also supported him well with two wickets to his name.
In reply, the Young Afghan Atlans chased down a mere 86-run target in 12.4 overs. The result marked Afghanistan’s third consecutive victory.
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