ICC U19 World Cup is a great platform for young and upcoming players to showcase their talent and make a name for themselves. It also gives the spectators a glimpse in to what the future holds and what to expect from the coming generation of players.
With the ICC U19 Cricket World Cup 2016 beginning today in Bangladesh let us look back at the players who went on to become stars and who had a great impact on the game at the senior level as well. I will do this in a two part series called 'Modern Superstars who Shone at the ICC U19 World Cup' with each series focusing on 5 players.
Nasser Hossain
Born in India, Nasser played in the inaugural U19 tournament held in Australia in 1988. He went on to become one of England's finest captains having led them in 43 test matches and securing some of their most famous series victories. He played 96 tests in total and scored over 5500 runs with an average of almost 38.
Sanath Jayasuriya
He played for Sri Lanka in the 1988 edition too and went on to become the most valuable ODI cricketer to have ever played the game. He revolutionized the game with his batting in the 1996 World Cup which Sri Lanka won. He played 110 test matches and 445 ODI matches and his name is etched as one of the most destructive batsman that the game has ever seen. He was also a very handy slow left arm bowler who claimed over 300 ODI wickets
Mushtaq Ahmed
The Pakistani leg spinner also played with Nasser and Sanath in the 1988 U19 tournament. He went on to pick 19 wickets at a paltry average of 16 in that tournament and finished as the leading wicket taker. He played 52 test matches and 144 ODI matches for Pakistan and formed a potent partnership with Saqlain Mushtaq.
Chris Gayle
The destructive batsman first represented West Indies at the U19 World Cup held in 1998. He would be the highest scorer in that tournament with 364 runs at an average of almost 73. Gayle is perhaps the best T20 player that there has ever been and his impact on the game is immeasurable. He also has a test triple century and is a handy spin bowler too. He has played over 100 and 250 test and ODI matches respectively for West Indies.
Yuvraj Singh
Yuvraj made his first appearance for India at the U19 ICC Cricket World Cup in 2000. He made several telling contributions in that tournament and was given the Man of the Series award as India won under the captaincy of Kaif. Yuvraj would then go on to replicate his early success by being one of India's best middle order batsmen in the ODI and T20 format. He would help India lift the 2011 World Cup at home with his high impact batting and bowling.
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