Vijay Zol’s earliest sporting memory is of watching Sachin Tendulkar on television thrashing a century against Australia at Sharjah Cricket Stadium.

The diminutive captain of the India Under 19 side gave a passable impersonation of a left-handed “Little Master” as he helped himself to a dapper ton against Pakistan yesterday.

His effort, during a vintage alliance with fellow centurion Sanju Samson, laid the platform for India’s 40-run victory, as the world champions added the Under 19 Asia Cup to their trophy collection.

The two most-highly regarded players in Indian age-group cricket shared a stand worth 180 as their side amassed a daunting 314 for eight from their 50 overs.

At the end, as the Indian teenagers battled each other to claim the stumps for souvenirs, the two batting heroes hugged each other in celebration. The old pals act had worked a charm.

“[Samson] has been a great mate of mine and that partnership we had today had been expected throughout the tournament,” said Zol, whose captaincy and 100 earned him the man-of-the-match award.

“It came at the right time, so I am really happy. Batting with him takes pressure off you when you know he can hit the long sixes whenever needed. You can take your time and play your own game.

“I hadn’t got many runs for the team in the past four matches and it was in the back of my mind that I wanted to contribute.

“The stage was there for me in the final and I wanted to put my hand up and do the job.”

Pakistan should have know they faced a tall task against this Indian batting line up, given that for much of the game the televisions inside the pavilion were showing reruns of Samson’s Twenty20 exploits for Rajasthan Royals.

Despite being of merely medium height and build, Samson is a fearsome striker of the ball.

One of his four sixes hit the signboard at the top of the Qasim Noorani Stand at extra cover. That despite the fact he had appeared to expend less effort on the lofted drive than it takes to get out of bed in the morning.

“I am very happy to deliver for my team in the final,” Samson said. “It is a great challenge to play against Pakistan and we enjoyed the contest.

“We have one more month now until the World Cup [in UAE in February] and we want to get better before then.”

Between Zol, Samson and Ankush Bains, the outstanding wicketkeeper-opener who had set India’s innings off to a flyer, few of Pakistan’s bowlers were spared.

Even Karamat Ali, the leg-spinner who was the leading wicket-taker in the tournament, suffered.

The pitch was unforgiving, so flat that the batsmen could virtually see their reflections in it.

When the margin for error is so minimal it is usually leg-spinners who suffer most, and so it proved as Karamat was dominated like never before in this tournament.

He sent down more long hops than in the previous four matches combined, while one full toss was deposited into the adjacent road by Samson.

And Samson was in such destructive form that he literally hit Salman Saeed out of the attack.

He blazed a drive back at the seam bowler so hard that Saeed, who had little choice but to attempt to stop it as he had no time to get out of the way, had to leave the field with an injured left hand.

It was the culmination of a miserable day for Saeed, who had earlier dropped the simplest chance to dismiss Zol when the India captain was on just 33, and leaked 49 runs from his 5.5 overs.

It said much for his character, though, that he still opted to go in to bat at No 11, despite a heavily strapped hand and the match lost, in order to see his teammate, Kamran Ghulam, to his century.

Defeat was harsh on both Ghulam, the all-rounder who was named player of the tournament, and Sami Aslam, whose 87 was the first time in four attempts he has failed to notch a century against India.

“We have played tremendously between the Tri-Nations series [against England and UAE] and Asia Cup and were unbeaten until this final,” said Azam Khan, the Pakistan coach.

“Our fielding cost us but India played very well. We need to improve in certain areas and I hope during the World Cup the team will play better.”

The victory meant India avenged their two-wicket defeat to Pakistan in the pool stage, which had happened four days earlier.

“It was a very thin line dividing victory in defeat and we fought back very well,” said Bharati Arun, the India coach.

pradley@thenational.ae