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Netherlands ODI Team. (Photo Source: Twitter)
The Netherlands will return to the One-Day International (ODI) World Cup after 12 years. The Dutch side has played quality cricket in the World Cup Qualifier and concluded the tournament as the runners-up. Their brilliant performance in the competition helped them earn a spot in the World Cup 2023.
Under Scott Edwards’ captaincy, the Dutch side will look to be effective against big teams. In the World Cup Qualifier, they beat the West Indies through the one-over eliminator. Last year, the Men in Orange grabbed a lot of eyeballs for beating South Africa in the T20 World Cup 2022. They will look to pull down quality teams with their excellence in the World Cup 2023 as well.
The Dutch side has never succeeded against big teams in World Cups but this time, they have some extraordinary talents who can give headaches to the other nine teams. Discussing more, let’s have a look at the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT) of the Orange army.
Here is the SWOT analysis of the Netherlands cricket team
Strengths
Superb all-rounders
The Netherlands have some skilled all-rounders in their 15-member squad. Roelof van der Merwe, Colin Ackerman, Bas de Leede, Sybrand Engelbrecht, and Saqib Zulfiqar do their jobs efficiently in all departments of the sport. Leede exuded confidence with both bat and ball in the World Cup Qualifier 2023. The 23-year-old racked up 285 runs with the bat in seven matches while in the bowling department, he took 15 wickets and ended up as the third-leading wicket-taker in the competition.
Fine spin-bowling unit
The Dutch side’s spin department also looks decent. Spinners such as Van der Merwe, Saqib Zulfiqar, Shariz Ahmed, and Aryan Dutt will look to take advantage of the turning surfaces of India and extract the desired results for their team in the World Cup.
Weaknesses
Batters’ struggle against spinners
The World Cup 2023 will be played in India where spinners are expected to wreak havoc on batters. The Netherlands’ batters struggle against spinners and their performance against Sri Lanka in the World Cup Qualifier final corroborates it. Chasing an average total of 234 in the decider game, the Dutch batters capitulated in front of Maheesh Theekshana and Wanindu Hasaranga. In the humongous ODI tournament coming ahead, the Men in Orange will have to be mentally strong to counter spinners.
Opportunities
The Netherlands have some players who are experienced in international cricket. Wicketkeeper-batter Wesley Barresi, captain Scott Edwards, Max O’Dowd, Paul van Meekeren, and Logan van Beek have been serving the team for a long time and these players have the capacity to make their side’s campaign notable in the 2023 World Cup.
Threats
The Netherlands have never had success against quality sides in World Cups and this record might demoralise them. Competing against Asian sides such as India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan won’t be easy for the Dutch side while Australia, England, New Zealand, and South Africa are also going to pose challenges for the Men in Orange.
