5 Netherlands players to watch out for in T20 World Cup 2024

Netherlands have a great history in T20 World Cups. They have qualified for the tournament on five occasions with the first one being in 2009, when they upset England in the tournament's opening game. Except in 2021, they have won atleast one match in every edition.

The Dutch have been one of the standout teams among the Associate nations in recent years. They were the only non full-members (other than co-hosts USA) to automatically qualify for the T20 World Cup 2024, after finising in the top eight of the 2022 edition. They also made it to the ODI World Cup 2023 as the only non full-member nation.

In T20 World Cup 2024, Netherlands have been drawn in Group D with South Africa, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and Nepal. They are missing two key players Roelof van der Merwe and Colin Ackermann due to County commitments but still boast a talented squad capable of pulling off a few upsets.

Five Netherlands players to watch out for in T20 World Cup 2024

1. Max O'Dowd

T20I Career: Matches 66, Runs 1774, Bat Avg. 29.56, SR. 121.42

Max O'Dowd is one of the most experienced batters in this line-up. He is known for scoring big runs and was the second highest run-scorer in the prrevious T20 World Cup in 2022. As an opener, his role is going to be extremely crucial and it remains to be seen how he deals the best bowlers in the world. The 30-year-old looked in good form in the recently concluded tri-series between Ireland, Netherlands, and Scotland, where he was the highest run-scorer with 123 runs in 3 matches at an average of 41. Although he has a low career strike rate, he is Netherlands' leading run-getter in T20Is.

2. Bas de Leede

T20I Career: Matches 34, Runs 677, Bat Avg. 30.77, SR. 106.11, Wkts 30, Bowl Avg. 17.73, ER. 8.31

Bas de Leede is probably the most important player in the Netherlands' line-up. He is a quality top order batter and an effective fast bowler as well. The 24-year-old lends balance to this Dutch squad. It is rare to find a player of De Leede's skillset in the world, which makes him such a unique player. His memorable knock of 123 off 92 balls in the 2023 ODI World Cup qualifiers made headlines as he single-handedly took Netherlands to the World Cup 2023. In T20Is too, he has a decent record and T20 World Cup 2024 could be the perfect opportunity for him to add more feather to his cap.

3. Scott Edwards

T20I Career: Matches 60, Runs 737, Bat Avg. 19.91, SR. 120.42

Being the captain of the team, Scott Edwards will have a huge responsibility to lead his team from the front. The wicketkeeper-batter is a quality middle order batter who relies heavily on rotation of strike and sweep shots. The 27-year-old is a good player of spin bowling but will be tested against the best spinners in the world. He scored a magnificent 78* off 69 balls against South Africa in the 2023 ODI World Cup, a match in which Netherlands registered a historic win. Edwards' calm head as a batter and as a captain will be crucial to Netherlands' chances in the T20 World Cup 2024.

4. Logan van Beek

T20I Career: Matches 27, Wkts 29, Bowl Avg. 19.68, ER. 7.65

Logan van Beek has played international cricket for both New Zealand and Netherlands. He will be representing Netherlands in this edition. He is a bowling allrounder who can be excellent with the new ball and is a big-hitter at the death. He bowled superbly and was the highest wicket-taker in the tri-series between Ireland, Netherlands, and Scotland recently with 8 wickets in 4 matches at an average of 9.87 and an economy rate of 5.26. The 33-year-old picked up 12 wickets in 8 matches in the 2023 ODI World Cup, including 3-60 in the historic win against South Africa.

5. Paul van Meekeren

T20I Career: Matches 61, Wkts 69, Bowl Avg. 20.89, ER. 7.02

The fastest bowler in the Netherlands squad, Paul van Meekeren, is capable of clocking speeds close to 140 kph on a regular basis. His high speeds and a smooth bowling action can make him Netherlands' go-to bowler in the tournament. He picked up 5 wickets in 3 matches at an average of 16.80 in the tri-series involving Ireland, Netherlands, and Scotland. His rhythm looks good and can cause trouble to the opposition batters with his pace and bounce. In 2023 ODI World Cup, he was the joint-highest wicket-taker for Netherlands with 12 wickets in 9 matches.

Also read: A look at India's selection conundrums heading into T20 World Cup 2024

Netherlands Squad for T20 World Cup 2024

Scott Edwards (C) (wk), Aryan Dutt, Bas de Leede, Kyle Klein, Logan van Beek, Max O'Dowd, Michael Levitt, Paul van Meekeren, Saqib Zulfiqar, Sybrand Engelbrecht, Teja Nidamanuru, Tim Pringle, Vikramjit Singh, Vivian Kingma, Wesley Barresi

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