World Cup 2023 | SWOT Analysis of Netherlands

image-lnbt535sNetherlands have qualified after playing the qualifiers for World Cup 2023 (Source: AP Photos)

Cricket in Netherlands is not as popular as it's in India or any other Asian full-member countries. The squad being led by Scott Edwards have arrived into the scene of World Cup after twelve years on the back of a successful World Cup Qualifer campaign. 

The Dutch side finished at the bottom in the World Cup Super League and had to rub shoulders in the World Cup Qualifiers held in Zimbabwe. They produced some valiant performances without a few of their regular players, left behind teams like West Indies, Ireland and Scotland to progressed into the Final. Although, the Ryahn Cook-coached unit failed to win against Sri Lanka in the final, they managed to book the tickets to India for the bonanza event starting October 5.

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This is almost the same Dutch community that shellshocked the nation by thrashing South Africa in the T20 World Cup last year, and spoiled the proteas' party. How does the side looks on paper this time around? Let's have a quick look at the strength, weakness, opportunity and threats of the Netherlands cricket team for the World Cup 2023.


Netherlands squad for World Cup 2023:

Scott Edwards (c), Max O'Dowd, Bas de Leede, Roelof van der Merwe, Logan van Beek, Vikram Singh, Colin Ackermann, Wesley Barresi, Saqib Zulfiqar, Shariz Ahmad,  Aryan Dutt, Ryan Klein, Teja Nidamanuru, Paul van Meekeren, Sybrand Engelbrecht.


Strength of Netherlands for World Cup 2023

Experience glued with impact

The KNCB announced a 15-man squad for the World Cup 2023 that saw the return of experienced players in Paul van Meekeren, Colin Ackermann and Roelof van der Merwe. Certainly, the trio bolsters the strength of Netherlands cricket that ended up as the runners-up of the tournament. 

Ackermann was the second-highest run-getter for Netherlands in the 2022 T20 World Cup while van Meekeren was their leading wicket-taker in the same competition. And talk about the experience of van der Merwe, he brings in a wealth of it, playing across the globe in various challenging competitions. Van der Merwe also played a crucial part for the Sunrisers Eastern Cape in the inaugural edition of SA20. 

Barring this, Wessley Baressi is someone who was a aprt of the international set-up in Cricket World Cup 2011 as well. So there's no doubt on the experience and the impact it could play for Netherlands in the upcoming bonanza event.


Weakness of Netherlands for World Cup 2023

Fragile batting against quality attack

The batting department of the Dutch is not always reliable. There are exciting names to look out for but consistency is an issue. The likes of Max O'Dowd, Scott Edwards, Vikramjit Singh, etc are full of potential but have failed to put pressure on the opponents with consistent run-scoring ability. One of the instances was in the final of WCQ 2023 against Sri Lanka. And even recent one being against Australia in the warm-up game at Trivandrum. 

Too much individual brilliance

If one closely follows the Dutch atmosphere of cricket, a lot of individual brilliance can be spotted. Teja Nidamanuru is one such batter who showcased enough grit in recent times but failed to gain proper assistance. There've been occasions when Barresi or Ackermann gets going but ends up shy of support from the other end. This is one aspect that has injured back the Men in Orange time and again.


Opportunity of Netherlands for World Cup 2023

Chance to grab eyeballs

What better opportunity for an associate side to gain the attention with brilliant performance against higher-ranked nations in a World Cup? When Ireland defeated Pakistan in 2007, it was considered as a shocker, when Bangladesh thrashed India in the very same year, it was coined as an 'upset'. And soon, there have been many scenarios where these nations have found a way to edge past various other compact opponents.

But the Netherlands do not have to look back at the triumphs of other nations. They themselves outplayed the Proteas and spoiled the party in the T20 World Cup some eleven months back. If the Scott Edwards-captained side can replicate a few more such runs, certainly the cricket in the Netherlands would grow by leaps and bounds.


Threat of Netherlands for World Cup 2023

Less exposure to subcontinents

Undoubtedly, the Netherlands are a side who gets very less number of games to rub shoulder with Asian Giants such as India. Most of their players in the squad are used to playing in UK conditions and are yet to be tested in the Indian soils. This is one of the grey areas of the Netherlands side. 

The fact that the World Cup-bound squad arrived nine days early than the original action could help them gain some idea about the Indian conditions. They had a camp in Alur and also faced the Karnataka domestic side in a two-match practice series.


Team Report Card

Attributes
Balance Rating
Top-order4
Middle-order4.5
Lower-order5
Pace-bowling5
Spin-bowling4.5
Total4.6



Prediction for Netherlands for World Cup 2023

The Netherlands can create a couple of upsets in the tournament. They're a good side and that is the reason why they're in the World Cup. But one does not see them making the cut for the semi-finals.