Mumbai: The Indian cricket board on Tuesday felicitated the triumphant Indian Under-19 World Cup winning team at a suburban hotel here after their arrival in the afternoon and the players were awarded a cheque of Rs 20 lakh each by the BCCI.

The team management and support staff were given Rs 15 lakh each, along with chief selector Abey Kuruvilla. Victorious team skipper Unmukt Chand thanked the team and the support staff for realising the victory in Australia.

BCCI secretary Sanjay Jagdale, who came to Mumbai specifically for the purpose from Indore, lauded the team's performance and remarked that the turning point was the closely-fought match against Pakistan that the squad, led by Delhi's Unmukt Chand, won.

"It was a great performance and a great achievement especially as they bounced back after losing to West Indies in the initial match," said Jagdale.

"I think the turning point was the close match against Pakistan that showed that this team had terrific self belief and hunger to win. They kept on improving and peaked at the right time, which is a sign of good cricketer or a good team.

Whatever opportunity they got, they made full use of it," the board secretary said.

Asked if the players could go and play at the higher level, he said, "Why not. This is the stepping stone. There is a lot of cricket left. They need consistency and I am sure they are capable of it."

Jagdale added that the board was trying to create opportunities in order to improve the game.

"We have started A tours also. India recently went to West Indies. Now they will go to New Zealand. We are planning to have continuity in the game and have increased the cut off from Under-22 to Under-25. We are creating opportunities by sending teams outside India. We are looking ahead for good sporting wickets where they can practice better."

BCCI joint secretary Anurag Thakur also praised the team and added they have a week to bask in the glory as the next domestic commences soon.

Source : CricketNext