West Indies begin U19 World Cup campaign with 5-wicket win over Tanzania 

West Indies 124 for 5 (Francis 52, Andrew 44, Mwamele 2-17) beat Tanzania 122 all out (Thakrar 26, Jobanputra 19, Lawes 3-23) by 5 wickets 

The West Indies defeated Tanzania by 5 wickets at Namibia’s High Performance Oval on Thursday to get their Men’s Under-19 World Cup campaign underway with a win. Vitel Lawes’ 3-wicket spell and a half-century from Tanez Francis highlighted the victory, with the Caribbean side now occupying an early place atop the standings in Group D with two points.

Openers Dylan Thakrar and Darpan Jobanputra got the Tanzanians off to a steady start, sharing in a 53-run stand before the West Indians responded with a triple strike in consecutive overs. Jonathan van Lange removed Jobanputra for 19 in the 14th over, before Shaquan Belle (2-23) dismissed Thakrar for a top score of 26 in the 15th, followed by the run-out of Ayaan Shariff for 1 in the 16th. 

59 for 3 became 75 for 5 before Lawes’ introduction into the attack. The left-arm wrist spinner needed no help in his work, trapping Abdulazak Mohamedi LBW before bowling Acrey Hugo and Ally Hafidh on his way to figures of 3 for 23. 

Micah McKenzie (2-15) then applied the finishing touches to the innings, removing Khalidy Juma for 12 as the Tanzanians were dismissed for 122 in 34 overs.

The West Indies had a quiet start to their chase, losing Zachary Carter (8) in the 4th over with 20 runs on the board. This brought Jewel Andrew to the crease. He and his international experience alongside Tanez Francis fashioned 80 runs for the second wicket, putting the Caribbean side within touching distance of victory.

However, with 23 more runs needed, the West Indies stuttered. They lost both Andrew, caught and bowled by Laksh Bakrania for 44, and Francis, out LBW to Augustino Mwamele after top-scoring with 52.

A double-wicket strike from Raymond Francis then followed, prising the wickets of skipper Joshua Dorne (5) and deputy van Lange for a duck in the same over.

Yet a boundary each from Belle (6*) and Shamar Apple (4*) in the 21st was all that was required for the West Indies to complete the chase at 124 for 5.