Dharamshala: Netherlands, otherwise known as a soccer powerhouse, especially in the nineties, has become the toast of fans, who cheered the team's win against formidable South Africa in the Cricket World Cup match played at the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association in Dharamshala on Tuesday.
The Dutch side led by wicket-keeper batter Scott Edwards defeated Temba Bavuma-led South Africa by 38 runs. Much of the credit goes to Edwards, who stood firm amid hostile South African bowling. At one point, Netherlands lost half their side inside 100 runs till Edwards took the game away from the proteas helping his team post a challenging total in a rain-curtailed game, which was reduced to 43 overs a side.
Edwards' knock of 78 is the highest score by a captain batting at No. 7 or lower in Cricket World Cup history. The Dutch skipper eclipsed former India captain Kapil Dev's 36-year-old record, who scored 72 against New Zealand in the 1987 World Cup.
Till now, the record belongs to Nathan Coulter-Nile, who smashed a 60-ball 92 against the West Indies in the 2019 World Cup. The Netherlands blowers then churned out a clinical show to bundle out the Opposition and register a 38-run win. The win by the Netherlands also snapped South Africa's winning streak in the tournament so far.
After his 68-ball 78 helped the Dutch team stun South Africa, Scott Edwards said that he was extremely proud and happy with the team's win. "Extremely proud. We came in with high expectations. We had very good players. Happy to get the first win out of the way. Hopefully, few more wins," Edwards said at the post-match presentation ceremony late Tuesday night.
"We do a fair bit of research. We came up with a few matchups. Some days it works and some days it doesn't. We were in decent positions in the first few games but then fell away. Extremely happy with the win," added Scott Edwards.
Celebrations erupted in the Netherlands dressing room once the last South African wicket fell and the Dutch recorded only their third win in the overall World Cup.
Born in the South Pacific island of Tonga and raised in Melbourne before making his international debut with the Netherlands in 2017 after their first-choice wicketkeeper got injured, Edwards is known for his passionate engagement with team assignments.
Ever ready for whatever role has come his way since his early cricketing days, Edwards in the words of his Netherlands opener Max O’Dowd is an 'awkward, but great man'.
"Whether it be golf at 7:00 AM or the World Cup, he’s always ready," O'Dowd said during a media interaction before the match. For Edwards, the captaincy would come out of the blue last summer after Pieter Seelaar was forced to retire owing to a long-term back injury.
It was only fitting that O’Dowd’s words came true once again as the Dutch skipper bailed his team from five down for 82 to 245 against a formidable Proteas pace attack before their bowlers sealed a memorable win. The result was a Déjà vu for the Proteas who had been knocked out by the Dutch from last year’s T20 World Cup in Australia.
Netherlands' wins in ODI World Cups
* Defeated Namibia by 64 runs, Bloemfontein, 2003
* Defeated Scotland by eight wickets, Basseterre, 2007
* Defeated South Africa by 38 runs, Dharamsala, 2023
*This was the first instance of the Netherlands beating a Full Member nation other than Zimbabwe and Ireland in ODIs. They tied against West Indies in the WC qualifiers and beat them in a Super Over.
*This was the first instance of South Africa losing an ODI against an Associate nation.
