Under-19 World Cup final: Manjot Kalra will prove to be a good player for the country, says father

Manjot Kalra battled like a champion. (Twitter)

As the Indian Under-19 cricket team lifted the World Cup trophy after thrashing Australia by eight wickets in the final on Saturday, the families of the winners said that they could not be more proud of the team for their emphatic victory.

India lifted a record fourth World Cup trophy as they chased down 217 in 38.5 overs, with the help of Manjot Kalra's magnificent unbeaten knock of 101 runs.

Praveen Kalra, father of Manjot, told ANI, "We are proud of him. Manjot will keep on performing like this. He will prove to be a good player for the country in the coming times. Our good wishes are with him."

Off-spinner Abhishek Sharma's father also expressed his happiness over India's glory and hailed the team's effort. "This is the happiest day of my life. India won the game one-sidedly. Abhishek is very determined. He used to ask me to make him practise to the level of high-class cricketers," Abhishek's father, who was also a cricketer, said.

He added, "I would now wish he performs sincerely in every match and tournament he plays, including the upcoming Vijay Hazare Trophy, and play for the Indian team in the future."

Meanwhile, Indian skipper Prithvi Shaw's coach Raju Pathak credited former Indian cricketer and Under-19 coach Rahul Dravid for the victory.

"I will credit coach Rahul Dravid for boosting the team. We were hopeful that Shaw will hit a century but it did not happen. Manjot Kalra batted really well and Harvik Desai too," Pathak said.