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For a cricketer to make it big on the international circuit, it is imperative that they show consistency at the domestic level and in global tournaments such as the U-19 World Cups which plays host to some of the finest prospective talents around the globe.
While most countries call-up youngsters based on their performances at the state level, the U-19 World Cup has produced some fabulous talents since its inception in 1988. With every passing year, fresh talent is groomed under the watchful eyes of some of the legendary players.
With the next U-19 World Cup soon to come, here's the list of the champions from each edition and their captains.
1988 (Australia) - Geoff Parker
The inaugural edition of the tournament was held in Australia as part of the Australian Bicentenary celebrations. The first of its kind, the tournament was named as '1998 McDonald's Bicentennial Youth World Cup'.
Held in Australia, the home team found the conditions rather easy and managed to register wins over every team except Pakistan. In the semifinals, the Aussies beat England by seven wickets led by a half-century from Brett Williams and in the finals, he scored a century to help Australia lift the cup after a fine 3-wicket haul from skipper Geoff Parker.
Brett Williams emerged as the highest-run scorer with 471 runs from 9 matches while skipper Geoff Parker had a good tournament with the ball.
1998 (England) - Owais Shah
After a long of ten years, the Youth World Cup was back in 1998 and was taking place in South Africa as the '1998 MTN Under-19 World Cup'. Sixteen teams took part in the competition with England running away with the spoils in the end.
England started well in the pool stage and won both opening matches before losing to Bangladesh in their last group stage match. In the Plate stage (quarterfinals), England occupied second place on the table and they qualified for the finals against New Zealand.
On the back of a fine century from Stephen Peters and a half century from skipper Owais Shah, England won the final and clinched the trophy, the first time since the tournament's inception.
2000 (India) - Mohammad Kaif
The 2000 edition was held in Sri Lanka and it was the first time the Islanders were hosting the gala tournament. India got off to a flyer, winning the two matches in their group stage and had to stay content with one washed out game.
In the Super League stage, Mohammad Kaif led India to three wins from as many matches, setting up a semi-final clash with Australia, a match which was dominated completely by India on the back of a century from Ravneet Ricky.
In the final clash against the hosts, an inspired bowling performance from India restricted SL to 179 before the batsmen got them home without much fuss.
2002 (Australia) - Cameron White
The 4th edition of the U-19 World Cup was held in New Zealand and the tournament was completely dominated by Australia, who ended up as the champions.
The Aussies got off to a flyer in their first match, decimating Kenya by 430 runs following which they hardly put a foot wrong in the whole tournament, winning every match on the road to the finals.
The finals had a lot of anticipation shrouded around it with the two giants Australia and South Africa facing off against each other. However, the Aussies made short work of the target, chasing down 207 runs within 46 overs with 7 wickets in hand.
Skipper Cameron White led the Aussie title charge with 423 runs from six matches at an outstanding average of 70.50, emerging as the highest-run scorer in the tournament.
2004 (Pakistan) - Khalid Latif
The fifth edition was hosted by Bangladesh which played host to sixteen teams. Placed in Group D in the round robin, Pakistan won all three of their games against Papa New Guinea, West Indies and Ireland.
In the Super League stage, Pakistan lost only one match against England while they won the other matches which ensured they were into the semifinals. In a high voltage clash against India in the semis, Pakistan kept their nerves to clinch a 5 wicket victory.
Playing the final against the West Indies, Pakistan's batting came good as they set West Indies a stern target of 231, which was too good for West Indies in the end.
Khalid Latif emerged as the highest run-getter for Pakistan with 291 runs from 8 matches at an average of 41.57.
2006 (Pakistan) - Sarfraz Ahmed
In 2006, the tournament was played in Sri Lanka, the second time that the islanders were hosting the U-19 World Cup. Pakistan won two of their three games and qualified for the Super League stages, where they beat Zimbabwe to make their way into the semifinals.
In the semifinals, Pakistan overcame some minor hurdles to go past West Indies and after beating Australia in the Super League semis, winning by 163 runs, the stage was set for a high-tension final against arch-rivals India.
Set a low target of 110, India could not chase it down which meant Pakistan created history as the first team to win back-to-back championships.
2008 (India) - Virat Kohli
For the first time in the history of the competition, the U-19 World Cup was taking place in an associate nation, Malaysia. India got off to a flier in the opening game, beating Papa New Guinea by 195 runs. In the next two games, India went on to register victories with Virat Kohli striking an important century against West Indies.
In the quarter finals, India easily beat England while in the semifinals, the D/L method came into play, giving India a ticket to march into the finals. In the finals against South Africa, India set RSA with an easy target of 160 but the Indian bowling restricted the batsmen and led India to its second U-19 World Cup victory.
Kohli had a good tournament and ended the tournament as third-highest run-getter with 235 runs from 6 matches at an average of 43.60.
2010 (Australia) - Mitchell Marsh
Following a lot of controversies ahead of the World Cup, the tournament was finally played in New Zealand and Australia was crowned champions of the 8th edition.
Placed in Group B, Australia won two out of three games and qualified for the knock-out stages where they beat New Zealand in the quarters by 62 runs. In the semifinals, Australia weathered a strong bowling attack from Sri Lanka and qualified for the finals against Pakistan.
In the finals, Australia restricted Pakistan to just 182 after setting a target of 208 on the back of a sublime exhibition of swing bowling from Josh Hazlewood.
The Australian skipper had a good outing in the World Cup, scoring 201 runs from 6 matches including a match-winning 97 in the semi-final against Sri Lanka.
2012 (India) - Unmukt Chand
The 2012 U-19 WC was hosted by Australia in the state of Queensland and the defending champions had a chance to retain the trophy on their home soil. Although they made it to the finals, Australia could not outplay India as skipper Unmukt Chand led them to victory with a stunning century.
India started off well in the group stages barring the defeat against West Indies and in the quarter finals, they managed to pull off a one-wicket heist against Pakistan. In the semi finals, pressure almost got to India but they held their nerves to register a thrilling 9-run win against New Zealand.
In the finals, Unmukt Chand led from the front with a scintillating century, scoring an unbeaten 111 off 130 balls with seven fours and six sixes after Sandeep Sharma wrecked havoc with the ball up front to seal the match in favour of India.
2014 (South Africa) - AK Markram
For the tenth edition of the U-19 World Cup, the tournament hit yet another landmark as it was played in the UAE for the first ever time in history. In addition to this, Afghanistan was also playing in the Super 8 stage, another achievement for the World Cup.
The victors, South Africa, started off on a strong note, having beaten all three teams in their group to top the table. In the quarters, they squelched Afghanistan by nine wickets before making small work of Australia in the semi finals, beating the three-time champions by 80 runs in the end.
In the finals, RSA restricted Pakistan to just 131 before a composed half-century from skipper Markram, who won the 'player of the series award', took them home with six wickets and 7.5 overs to spare.
2016 (West Indies) - SO Hetmyer
The 2016 edition was held in Bangladesh for the second time after it had already hosted the mega tournament once in 2004. Just like in the earlier seasons, West Indies won two of their three matches in the group stage.
In the first quarterfinal against Pakistan, West Indies put up an inspiring performance and won by five wickets to qualify for the semis against Bangladesh. Yet again, West Indies easily chased the 227-run target given to them by the hosts and they set up a finals date with India.
Batting first, India posted a meagre 145, a score that did not suffice as West Indies chased it down with just 5 wickets left to lift the U-19 WC for the very first time under SO Hetmyer and overall.
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