INTERNATIONAL CRICKET

“Qualifying for the Super 12 stage was the main goal for Netherlands” Roelof van der Merwe recalls his T20 World Cup experience

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Netherlands all-rounder Roelof van der Merwe shared his experience of playing in the recently concluded T20 World Cup.

The Netherlands advanced to the Super 12 stage of the T20 World Cup 2022 after battling hard in the qualifiers. They could not make it into the semi-finals, but they did play a big role in deciding the semi-finalists. Netherlands defeated Group 2 table toppers South Africa and knocked them out. Hence, Pakistan, out of nowhere, found itself in the top 2 and qualified for the semi-finals.

Nevertheless, Netherlands had a good season. They have shown exponential growth over the past few years. Their all-rounder Roelof van der Merwe has opened up and gave a few insights on their T20 World Cup campaign.

“Getting through the qualifiers first of all was massive for Netherlands,” Roelof van der Merwe

Roelof van der Merwe, who is playing for Somerset currently, sat down for a chat. He shared his views on Netherlands World Cup campaign. Der Merwe further said that qualifying for the Super 12 was a massive achievement for them.

“Getting through the qualifiers first of all was massive for us. Then to be able to enjoy the World Cup in the Super 12s was a really good experience and to win a couple of games was great. Qualifying for the Super 12 stage was the main goal. The qualifiers are a high-pressure situation and there were some good teams in there.”

He further revealed that their successful campaign has sent inspiration to the young guys back in their home country. Merwe said that back when he made his debut, there were not many players in the circuit. However, he now sees many young players and claims that cricket is thriving in the country at a rapid pace.

“If you look at the sporting landscape in the Netherlands, football is massive, so for the cricket team to perform like we did at the World Cup will hopefully inspire more youngsters to play the game”

“The more people who are playing the game, the better the team will be in years to come. In that regard, I think we did a good job. When I started playing for the Netherlands about six years ago, we had almost the same team for the first couple of years”

“Now we’re seeing new faces and new names with a lot of youngsters coming through. There is definitely talent coming up, which is exciting.”

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