Netherlands to debut in Super League with three ODIs against Ireland
Team will be missing key players like van der Merwe and ten Doeschate who have not been released by their counties
ESPNcricinfo staff
27-May-2021
Pieter Seelaar will lead the first ever squad Netherlands to play the ODI super league • Peter Della Penna
At long last, Netherlands will finally play their first match of the ODI Super League, which will decide who goes through to the 2023 World Cup. They qualified for the 13-team competition in December 2017 and might already have been initiated but for the complications caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. Now though the Dutch are ready to return to the top-flight as they take on Ireland over the course of three ODIs on June 2, 4 and 7 in Utrecht.
Allrounder Pieter Seelaar leads a 15-member contingent that includes professionals who have been active in the English circuit and youngsters who have done well in the domestic cricket, with Timm van der Gugten, Fred Klaassen and Brandon Glover all released for international duty. Shane Snater, Ryan ten Doeschate, Roelof van der Merwe and Colin Ackermann will remain with their counties. Fast bowler Paul van Meekeren, who was part of the last team that Netherlands picked to play 50-over cricket, against Scotland earlier this month, is also missing.
"Our first appearance in the much talked about Super League is no doubt the most important page in the Dutch Cricket History book," head coach Ryan Campbell said. "We hope to open this chapter with a really competitive series against our great friends and adversaries Ireland.
"We welcome back Timm van der Gugten, Fred Klaassen and Brandon Glover from county duties and I expect them to form a potent fast-bowling combination with Logan van Beek and Vivian Kingma, whose form has been outstanding so far this season [10 wickets in his last four 50-over matches].
"We will continue to back our best young talent and I'm extremely pleased to add Musa Nadeem to our long list of recent debutants. His form in the Topklasse [the local 50-over competition] has been outstanding as well as his hard work throughout our long hiatus from International Cricket due to Covid.
"This will no doubt be an extremely tough series, but I know the players are ready to go and it should be an exciting week of cricket."
A press release from the Netherlands cricket board on Thursday also indicated that this will be the "first time ever that cricket can be watched live on Dutch television, including Dutch commentary."