History Made as Japan Defeat Tanzania for Maiden U19 World Cup Win
- 2026-01-25
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- National Team (Men U19)
The Men’s Japan Under 19 Team made history as they defeated Tanzania by nine wickets to secure a first ever victory at the Under 19 World Cup.
Tanzania won the toss and opted to bat, but would have been questioning that decision when Charlie Hara-Hinze sent Karim Kiseto back to the hutch for a second-ball duck.
Tanzania regrouped however, and benefitted from some good fortune as Acrey Hugo (55) and Ayaan Shariff (40) put on 79 for the second wicket.
That partnership was broken by captain Kazuma Kato-Stafford and Tanzania had to rebuild again, moving steadily to 109 for two at the 30-over mark.
It was the leg-spin of Nihar Parmar that then turned the game decisively in Japan’s favour, his double strike in the 33rd over sparked a surge of wickets for Japan as they completely destroyed the Tanzania middle and lower order, taking eight wickets for 13 runs in 38 balls, with Parmar finishing with Japan’s best World Cup figures of four for 30.
The outfield catching of the Hara-Hinze boys also caught the eye, with both Monty and Gabby safe under the high balls, and Charlie taking a screamer at point to remove the captain off the bowling of Nikhil Pol, who finished with three for 23.
With Tanzania all out for 131 in 38.3 overs, Japan knew they needed to bat sensibly to dispel the memories of the warm up contest between these two teams, and record an historic win at a World Cup.
Parmar came to the fore again, opening with Taylor Waugh for the first time at the tournament and putting on a flawless 122-run opening partnership to take the game away from Tanzania. Parmar completed a Player of the Match performance by registering his maiden half century at the World Cup, ending 53 not out, although a mix up towards the end meant Waugh was run out for 47.
It was left to Nikhil Pol to finish things off, crashing a six over point to bring up victory in style and spark celebrations in the crowd and the dugout.
Japan conclude their tournament with this win, and can look back proudly on three weeks of immense progress full of positive outcomes and landmark achievements.
The team and staff would like to thank all the supporters who made the long journey to Windhoek to cheer on the team, and the support of everyone back home and around the world for cheering the team on. This win is for everyone who has contributed to the rise of Japan Cricket.
Match Schedule
- 10th January (Saturday) 16:30 – Japan vs Tanzania (Japan lost by 81 runs)
- 13th January (Tuesday) 16:30 – Japan vs West Indies (Japan lost by 229 runs)
- 17th January (Saturday) 16:30 – Japan vs Sri Lanka (Japan lost by 203 runs)
- 20th January (Tuesday) 16:30 – Australia vs Japan (Australia won by 8 wickets)
- 22nd January (Thursday) 16:30 – Ireland vs Japan (Ireland won by 4 wickets)
- 24th January (Saturday) 16:30 – Japan vs Tanzania (Japan won by 9 wickets)
All times are Japan Standard Time. All matches are 50 Overs.
All matches will be available to watch on ICC TV and the JCA Social Media platforms will be active with plenty of content and behind the scenes clips – so be sure to follow closely!