It will be a historic ODI World Cup for the Netherlands, that’s for sure! They were nowhere near close to the tournament and came from nowhere, beating the West Indies in the process to reach where they are today.
Here, it must be mentioned that the Netherlands is not playing the ODI World Cup for the first time. They played in the World Cup way back in 1993!
They won two games. Fans would be hoping that the Netherlands win at least one so that the tournament becomes exciting. In any ODI Cricket World Cup Betting site, you may find highest odds for Netherlands. You must know what’s their capabilities before you get into predictions.
Who Are the Top Five Players for the Netherlands in the ODI World Cup?
The Netherlands have announced their 15-man squad for the ODI World Cup, which is set to begin on October 5th.
We will take a close look at the five players who can turn out to be dangerous.
- Max O’Dowd
- Teja Nidamanuru
- Roelf van der Merwe
- Bas de Leede
- Colin Ackermann
Max O’Dowd:
Born in New Zealand, O’Dowd has traveled halfway around the world to the Netherlands, where his journey culminated.
- It was in August 2019 that this 29-year-old made his international debut against Zimbabwe, and since then he has sealed the opening spot for himself.
- Despite having a ‘Thor’-like hairstyle, O’Dowd plays conventional cricket, playing mostly in the ‘v.’
- He has played 33 ODIs, accounting for 1138 runs. Although he doesn’t have a century, he might get one in India.
Teja Nidamanuru:
Just like O’Dowd, Nidamanuru had criss-crossed the world just to realise his dream of becoming an international cricketer.
- He first moved to New Zealand, where he made his first-class debut for Auckland in the 2017-18 season.
- By 2019, he had understood that he needed more opportunities and moved to the Netherlands, where he made his international debut against the West Indies in 2022.
- Interestingly, he played the life-changing knock against the same opposition in the World Cup qualifiers in Zimbabwe that knocked the West Indies out.
Roelof van der Merwe:
Roelof van der Merwe doesn’t need an introduction. He is perhaps the most senior cricketer in this side.
- He played for South Africa in the 2009 T20 World Cup and made a name for himself at the 2009 IPL, where he represented RCB.
- Thanks to this wealth of experience, he was given a slot despite not playing the ODI World Cup qualifiers in Zimbabwe.
- He played 16 ODIs, accounting for 19 wickets.
Bas de Leede:
Watch out for star all-rounder De Leede. He is a batting all-rounder by nature and bats usually around 5 or 6.
- Moreover, he is also a military medium pacer and comes on as the first change for the new-ball bowlers.
- In 50-over cricket, the Netherlands would need him to take over after the end of the initial powerplay.
- This 23-year-old has played 30 ODIs, accounting for 765 runs in the process. Moreover, he also has 24 wickets with a career-best figure of 5/52.
Colin Ackermann:
Born in South Africa, Ackermann never played for the Porteas. In fact, he played a crucial role in knocking South Africa out of the T20 World Cup, where he scored a crucial 41 runs.
- This 32-year-old had left South Africa for better opportunities back in 2010.
- Despite landing in England and joining Leicestershire, he never quite made it big until he switched to the Netherlands, where he made his debut against South Africa in 2021.
- He has played seven ODIs, scoring 211 runs in the process.
Final Thoughts
The Netherlands are not playing in the ODI World Cup for the first time. In fact, they are the most experienced ‘new team.’
They made their debut in 1996 and appeared in 2003, 2007, and 2011, playing a grand total of 20 games, among which they won just two.
They beat the West Indies en-route to the ODI World Cup 2023. But questions remain. Like the way they lost to Sri Lanka in the World Cup Qualifiers final, where they couldn’t even chase down a below-250 total on board, must have rung alarm bells.
But one must understand that unlike big teams like India and Pakistan, the Netherlands need good coaching infrastructure. Their players need more exposure and better salaries.
That is the reason some of their players still don’t consider cricket a full-time career and continue to have different jobs. Until their authorities address these questions, expecting quality performance from the Netherlands is nothing but foolishness.
