A Lot to Cherish and Even More to Learn: Netherlands’ Unfinished Business in World Cup 2023 – News18

‘We just want to qualify for the semi-finals’

This was the only aim for the Netherlands who made it to the World Cup 2023 after knocking out two-time champions West Indies in the qualifiers. Their victory against South Africa added a new twist to the tournament with the fans hoping for some more surprises from them in the tournament. But unfortunately, they couldn’t maintain the rhythm and bowed out with a 10th-place finish. They couldn’t make it to the semis but definitely made a lot of fans in India.

Let’s have a look at how the Scott Edwards-led Netherlands fared in the ICC ODI World Cup 2023.

Follow all the action from the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 including the World Cup schedule, World Cup 2023 results, and ICC Cricket World Cup points table. Players are vying to top the World Cup 2023 Most Runs and World Cup 2023 Most Wickets charts. 

Netherlands’ performance in the World Cup 2023

Played: 9

Won: 2

Lost: 7

Standing on the points table: 10th (Last)

High Point of the tournament: Defeating South Africa by 38 runs

The ICC World Cup 2023 produced some astonishing contests and one of them was between the Netherlands and South Africa in Dharamsala. The Dutch top-order had faltered and the team needed someone to shoulder the innings. Skipper Scott Edwards came to the fore with a belligerent 69-ball 78, smashing 10 boundaries and a six, to set the Proteas 246-run target. In reply, Logan van Beek bagged a three-fer while the likes of Paul van Meekeren (2/40), Roelof van der Merwe (2/34) and Bas de Leede (2/36) deflated South Africa. The Netherlands registered their first win in the tournament.

Lowest point of the tournament: Loss to Afghanistan

Despite losing to Sri Lanka and Australia, the Netherlands were very much on course to make it to the semi-final, something they dreamt of right from the beginning of the tournament. But Afghanistan dented the Dutch ship, sailing their own safely to shore. The Netherlands ran themselves out against a spirited Afghanistan, losing all chances to make a top-four finish.

Captaincy verdict

The world saw a wicketkeeper leading the team to World Cup glory a decade ago but Scott Edwards didn’t have the same fate. Though he replicated MS Dhoni’s calmness but not the result. Moreover, the inexperienced resources made the job difficult for him and as a result, the team bowed out of the tournament. But some of his moves were impressive, like opening the attack with Aryan Dutt on tricky Lucknow tracks. The end result wasn’t in the team’s favour but the moves paid off.

Most valuable player

Scott Edwards led the team from the front and produced his best when the team needed him the most. He got two fifty-plus scores, both of them came in a winning cause. An unbeaten 70 against South Africa and an 89-ball 68 against Bangladesh aided the team with challenging totals that the opponents couldn’t chase. Edwards ended the tournament as the second-highest run-getter for his team, with 259 runs.

Major disappointment

The failure of their top order hurt the Netherlands the most in the entire tournament. Their highest opening partnership was just 28 runs. Barring Vikramjit Singh’s fifty against Pakistan in Hyderabad, none of the top-order batters could fire all cylinders. Poor starts impacted the Netherlands’ overall batting show in almost every game until someone like Edwards and Sybrand Engelbrecht came to the rescue with a decent knock down the order.

Tournament verdict

Once placed in the top 7 on the table, the Netherlands lost the plot with a couple of defeats. Coach Ryan Cook had put a lot of effort into constituting the team from scratch that did exceptionally well in the qualifiers but couldn’t carry the momentum in the main event. They are now required to get back to the drawing board rectify the mistakes and try to overcome the shortcomings. Maybe adding more firepower in the batting unit can solve their problems going forward.

Statistics

Most runs: Sybrand Engelbrecht – 300

Most wickets: Bas de Leede – 16

Highest individual score: Scott Edwards – 78* vs South Africa

Best Bowling Figures: Paul van Meekeren – 4/23 vs Bangladesh