Netherlands defeat South Africa, squad, video, highlights, fixtures

The Netherlands wasn’t even supposed to play in this World Cup. This was not part of the script.

The Dutch team qualified for the showpiece tournament after beating three Test nations, including two-time champions West Indies, in Zimbabwe earlier this year.

In the Netherlands, only around 6,500 people play cricket. You cannot find this sport on any of the free channels in the country.

The Dutch national team does not have a full-time professional contract, meaning some players are forced to seek opportunities elsewhere, such as in the county circuit. Others work day jobs to stay afloat in the off-season.

The Netherlands then found themselves without their entire frontline attack in the World Cup qualifiers, as Paul van Meekeren and Colin Ackermann had national commitments.

Despite this, the Netherlands pulled off a miraculous Super Over victory over the West Indies in Harare to book their place at the World Cup, where they compete alongside some of the sport’s powerhouses.

Ahead of the tournament’s opening match against Pakistan, head coach Ryan Cook said the Netherlands’ goal was to reach the semi-finals. And on Tuesday evening, that claim didn’t seem implausible.

Watch every match of the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup live ad-free on Kayo Sports. Join Kayo now and start streaming instantly >

The Dutch toppled South Africa by 38 runs in Dharamshala, having also beaten the Proteas in last year’s T20 World Cup in Australia. This was the Netherlands’ first World Cup victory against a Test nation and South Africa’s first ODI defeat against an association team.

The Netherlands have breathed new life into the World Cup, which had been plagued by one-sided confrontations in the early rounds – even South African fans couldn’t resist donning their caps after Tuesday’s upset .

This is a team that seven years ago did not have ODI status.

This is a team that finished bottom of the Super League table after winning three of their 24 ODIs – and those wins came against Ireland and Zimbabwe.

This is a team that received around $1.8 million from the ICC per year during the previous World Cup cycle. In contrast, Australian captain Pat Cummins’ domestic contract is worth around $3 million per year.

This is a team that has not played any ODI cricket since June’s World Cup qualifiers, forcing Cook to send an SOS to his rivals.

“This is a call to everyone who wants to confront us,” he said at a press conference in July.

“We would love to have a game or two. Our guys haven’t been to the subcontinent many times before, so it would be good to have some meets somewhere in the subcontinent as well.

Earlier this week, when asked about the dangerous pitch at the picturesque Dharamsala stadium, Cook claimed it was better than the pitches they train on at home.

The Dutch men’s team is full of players who have failed to integrate into the national system of their country of birth. Logan van Beek, for example, represented New Zealand at the 2010 Under-19 World Cup, also playing basketball for the Kiwis.

Born in Wellington, the all-rounder patiently waited three years for international eligibility before finally making his debut for the Netherlands in the 2014 T20 World Cup.

Then there’s Dutch captain Scott Edwards, who previously worked as an electrician in Melbourne while playing second XI matches for Victoria.

Born in Tonga and raised in Australia, Edwards grew up idolizing Adam Gilchrist, and the legendary wicket-keeper’s influence was evident on Tuesday night as Edwards hit 78 off 69 balls and took three catches in a player’s performance from match.

And what about Paul van Meekeren, who has represented the Netherlands for over a decade. When the 2020 T20 World Cup was postponed due to the Covid-19 pandemic, van Meekeren managed to make ends meet as an Uber Eats driver.

And don’t forget Sybrand Engelbrecht, who represented South Africa at the Under-19 World Cup in Malaysia before retiring from all forms of cricket in December 2016. In early 2021, he was sent by flying to the Netherlands to lead a company’s European expansion, playing recreational cricket on the weekends. He fell in love with the game again and two years later he participated in a World Cup.

Roelof van der Merwe, the oldest player in the tournament, took two crucial wickets and scored a 29 against his former national team on Tuesday. The 38-year-old played 12 ODIs and 13 T20Is for South Africa before rekindling his cricket dream in Europe.

And finally, Teja Nidamanuru, a cricketer of Indian origin who holds an administrative position with the Koninklijke Nederlandse Cricket Board, which allows him to live in the Netherlands on a skilled worker visa. During last week’s World Cup match against Pakistan in Hyderabad, Nidamanuru’s extended family saw him play cricket for the first time.

This Dutch team charmed the cricket world with their camaraderie and unbridled enthusiasm. At the end of their pre-season camp in Bangalore, the team’s four net bowlers were cheered in unison by the entire group of players as they ran to bowl their final delivery.

Dutch players look at pieces of paper during their World Cup matches and read handwritten notes about their opponents’ weaknesses and strengths. Vice-captain Max O’Dowd was seen pulling out his cheat sheet during Tuesday’s win over South Africa.

“We do quite a bit of research,” Edwards said in the postgame press conference.

“We offer some matchups. Some days it works, some days it doesn’t. »

LEARN MORE

‘HARD TO BELIEVE’: A Huge Flaw Australians Need to Fix

WC TALKING POINTS: X-Factor awakened in stunning spell

Last year, Cook banned his team from using the word “associate” in press conferences, saying it perpetuated the image that they were weaker than their opponents.

“People often call us servants of cricket,” Cook said earlier this week.

“We consider ourselves a cricket nation that plays in a good style. We face the best teams in the world. We will put everything in place.

The Netherlands next face Sri Lanka, the other World Cup qualifier, on Saturday at the Ekana Stadium in Lucknow, with first ball scheduled for 4pm AEDT.