Kenya U19 avoided the wooden spoon finish in the U19 World Cup as they beat Papua New Guinea U19 in a low-scoring thriller by 14 runs to win the 15th/16th play-off.
Kenya U19 batted first and got bowled out for 176 but their bowlers came back strongly and held their nerves to bowl out PNG U19 for 162 to finish at #15 place in the World Cup. Gerard Mwendwa (4/37) and Jayant Mepani (3/22) led the Kenyan revival after their low total, batting first. Mepani starred with the bat as well top-scoring with 44 n.o off 79 deliveries and his partnership with Siddharth Vasudev (31 off 68) yielding 60 runs for the 8th wicket proved match-winning for Kenya.
PNG Garamuts bowlers did all the hard work with James Tau (2/36) & Sema Kamea (3/24) starring with the ball along with Eisa Eka (1/24), Daure Aiga (1/32) and Haegi Toua (1/20) providing good support act to the opening bowlers.
PNG Batsmen let down to finish without a victory in the tournament as four batters among the top 6 getting runs but could not stay till the end to take the team home. Nou Rarua (47 off 71) & Ovia Sam (30 off 65) were the top-scorers for the Garamuts as they suffered top-order and late-order collapses including 2 run-outs to finish 14 short of their target.
Both teams will be back in their regional qualifications for the next edition of the U19 Cricket World Cup.
