World Cup: Why don't people pursue cricket in the Netherlands; Aakash Chopra says lack of money

The Netherlands stunned South Africa by 38 runs in their league fixture of the ongoing ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 on Tuesday. Former India player Aakash Chopra reveals why only a few people take up the sport in the European country.

Hyderabad: The Netherlands team stunned South Africa by 38 runs at the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association (HPCA) Stadium in Dharamshala on Tuesday. This was the second upset of the marquee tournament after Afghanistan defeated defending champions England on Sunday at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi on Sunday last.

The Netherlands is known as a good soccer-playing country. They were in third place in the 2014 FIFA World Cup and were runners-up in the 2010 FIFA World Cup. It also excels in hockey, but very few players from this European nation take up cricket, which is considered as a religion in India. Hence the victory by the Netherlands is more special. For the first time, the Netherlands defeated a Test-playing nation in the ODI World Cup.

The Netherlands had knocked Proteas out of the T20 World Cup 2022. Former India player Aakash Chopra explained why very few people in the Netherlands take up cricket as a sport. “The Netherlands is a team full of amateurs. There are very few professionals in the side. And that is because there’s no money or very little money. No one has a central contract there."

"They do have retainers, but that too depends on how much cricket the concerned player plays. "During qualifiers, seven of their players were not even there - they were playing county cricket. Someone like Bas de Leede came for the qualifiers and went back simply because there’s no money to play qualifiers. So even if people want to play for the Netherlands, the lack of money holds them back. They are a team capable of playing one match that everyone remembers and that’s what they did against South Africa," Aakash Chopra told JioCinema.

The Netherlands, who registered only their third win in the history of ODI World Cups, will lock horns with Sri Lanka in their next game on October 21 at the Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana stadium in Lucknow.