England versus Netherlands at Nagpur in World Cup 2011 appeared just another match where minnow Netherlands were to be slaughtered as has been the case with other minnows in the first four match of the tournament. But, after fielding first and chasing a score of 293, England might be feeling that Oranges are bitter.
Scorecard and Statistics: England Vs Netherlands
Nagpur is known as Orange city in India. The Netherland teams are also nick named as The Orange. Facing the Orange in the the Orange city has turned out to be a nightmare for the title contender English team.
Batting first, powered by the century Ryan ten Doeschate, the Dutch reached unbelievable 290 in 50 overs. While Ryan ten Doeschate scored a magnificent 119 in just 110 balls with 3 sixes and 9 fours, other middle order batsmen supported him well to help them set a defendable target. The captain Barren scoring 34* and Cooper adding valuable 47.
If the Dutch bowlers (Mudassar Bukhari, PM Seelaar, BP Loots, BA Westdijk) can bowl calmly rather than getting nerved by the World Cup occasion, it is nobody’s guess that the first upset of World Cup 2011 is on the way. If Ryan ten Doeschate can come to field, his bowling will enhance Dutch chances of winning the match. After all he is not only their best bet, but one of the best all rounder around the globe.
England on the other hand may need to do more than motivating themselves to prove that they are carrying the same winning spirit that earned them Ashes and a good record in the past few years under the captaincy of Strauss.
The new opening combination of Pietersen and Strauss is a gamble that English fan would pray to succeed. It should better otherwise Pietersen’s absence in the middle order may make English batting much weaker side.
Considering English batting depth, any target below 300 is achievable. Yet, seeing the dropped shoulders while bowling the upset result is set to happen. If it happens, Group B is bound to become more interesting with Ireland being the other minnow in the group who has qualified for the next round knocking out Pakistan in the 2007 World Cup.
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