CHENNAI: THE Netherlands are keen to put up a professional display and improve their bowling in particular when they face United States of America in a Group A match in the T20 World Cup at MA Chidambaram stadium here on Friday night. Netherlands need to win the game in order to keep their Super Eights hopes alive.
Having suffered a narrow defeat to Pakistan in their tournament opener in Colombo, the Dutch bounced back to thrash Namibia in their next outing. Chasing 157, they sealed a seven wicket win with two overs to spare to remain firmly in contention for a place in the next stage.
All-rounder Logan van Beek was confident of a good show by his team and used 'The Tulip' for which Netherlands is famous for as a metaphor and said it was time for the 'Oranje' to blossom and shine at the World Cup.
"The unique thing about a tulip is that there are 15 different varieties and we've got a squad of as many players. It's about the care you put into the soil, the maintenance and the preparation. And, at some point, you want it to bloom. We're now in blooming season when it comes to this World Cup," van Beek said in the pre-match press conference.
Looking back on the previous results, van Beek said, "I would love to be sitting here with two (wins) from two (matches) and a chance to seal qualification on Friday. But that's not the reality. What we need to do is put in a strong performance against USA and then go into the India game believing we can do something special."
All-rounder Bas de Leede has been a key player for Netherlands in their campaign so far. He anchored the chase against Namibia with an unbeaten 72 and also picked up two key wickets in the middle overs, including that of skipper Gerhard Erasmus.
While the Dutch have reliable options at the top of the order, concerns persist over their middle and lower-order batting.
That vulnerability was exposed against Pakistan when they were at a comfortable 123/4 after 15 overs and from there they were 147 all out in 19.5 overs, losing their last six wickets for just 24 runs. This is one area that they have to address.
Opener Max O'Dowd, one of their key batters known for his explosive starts has had a poor run so far, managing only single-digit scores in the two matches so far. Playing their seventh T20 World Cup, the Netherlands have evolved into a formidable unit and will rely on their bowling depth, particularly at the death, to outsmart USA.
It may be recalled that Netherlands trained at the CSK facility at Guru Nanak College and Navalur which may give them the upper edge over familiarity with conditions here. Their batters played a lot against local spinners to polish their foot work against the turning ball. On the other hand USA after troubling India in their opening game in Mumbai, were outplayed by Pakistan in Colombo in their second match.
Lose against Netherlands on Friday and USA will be out of contention for the Super Eight stage. For the record USA, have not beaten Netherlands in the three matches they have played each other so far.
The USA have shown promise with the ball, but have failed with the bat, with sloppy fielding also costing them momentum.
Against India, they reduced the fancied opponents to 77/6 before letting the game slip after skipper Suryakumar Yadav was dropped on 17 by bowler Shubham Ranjane. Yadav went on to score an unbeaten 84, lifting India to 161/9, before the USA were restricted to 132/8.
Shadley van Schalkwyk has been impressive in the powerplay, while leg-spinner Mohammad Mohsin, left-arm spinner Harmeet Singh are the ones to watch out.
Bowling has been the USA's main strength, but they will be hoping for a stronger showing from their top order. Captain Monank Patel has scores of 0 against India and 3 against Pakistan, while wicketkeeper-opener Andries Gous has managed 6 and 13 respectively.
Gous was outstanding during the home T20 World Cup two years ago. His form will be crucial for USA.
"Tomorrow is another day. I think the boys are taking care of themselves. There were a few niggles in the dugout but the boys are putting in the time with their physios and looking after themselves. So hopefully tomorrow we can go with our full strength," wicket-keeper batter Shayan Jahangir said.
He said that the team learnt a lot of lesson after their defeat to India. "We played against them back in 2024 as well. We put on a good show. Suryakumar Yadav took the game away from us (first game). The sense of belonging is what we got from the game," said Jahangir.
"These tournaments make us believe that we are not any shorter than any other major teams in the world. Given the opportunities, whenever we play, we put on a show. Hopefully in the future as well, we are going to keep getting those opportunities and keep making history," Jahangir added.