Netherlands name competitive World Cup Qualifier squad in spite of absences
Experienced wicket-keeper Scott Edwards will once again captain the Netherlands, taking with him a competitive group even without a number of absences.
A host of key players - including veteran duo Roelof van der Merwe and Colin Ackermann - will miss the tournament due to playing commitments in England’s County Championship, though young-gun all-rounder Bas de Leede will travel for the tournament.
As well as de Leede contributing on both sides, Dutch hopes of qualifying for the 50-over World Cup at the end of the year will likely rest with the likes of Max O'Dowd, Vikramjit Singh, Teja Nidamanuru and Edwards with the bat, and Logan van Beek, Viv Kingma and Aryan Dutt with the ball.
Despite the absence of a host of proven performers, Edwards is confident his team have enough firepower to compete well during the three-week tournament.
“Coming off the back of a three-game series in Zimbabwe a few months ago, we have been really intentional in our preparation for the qualifiers and we are confident the squad we have picked can play a brand of cricket that will be successful in these conditions," Edwards said.
"We have a good mixture of experienced players along with some exciting young players who have performed well in the domestic Pro Series and club season leading into this tournament.”
The Netherlands are drawn in Group A for the Zimbabwe event and commence their Qualifier campaign against the tournament hosts at Harare Sports Club on June 20.
Matches against the USA, Nepal and the West Indies follow for the Netherlands, with the European side requiring a top three finish in the group to qualify for the Super Six stage of the event.
The top two teams at the end of the Super Sixes then earn a place in the 50-over showcase at the end of the year.
The Netherlands finished in 13th place in the recent ICC Men's Cricket World Cup Super League and will have gained some confidence of making it out of the First Round and reaching the Super 12 stage of last year's ICC Men's T20 World Cup in Australia.
Netherlands squad: Scott Edwards (c) (wk), Max O'Dowd, Logan van Beek, Vikram Singh, Aryan Dutt, Viv Kingma, Bas de Leede, Noah Croes, Ryan Klein, Teja Nidamanuru, Wesley Barresi, Shariz Ahmad, Clayton Floyd, Michael Levitt, Saqib Zulfiqar.
