To chase 190 in 20 overs under pressure is always a tough task. And to do it in 14.2 overs in order to seal a Super 10 berth is close to improbable but that’s what the Netherlands did when they completed the mammoth task against Ireland in Sylhet on Friday.
By chasing down Ireland’s competitive 189-4, Netherlands dramatically clinched a place in the Super 10 phase of the ICC World Twenty20 2014 as they reached the target in 13.5 overs with six wickets in hand.
In pursuit of a hefty score, Netherlands wanted to make a match out of it but little did they know that they would eventually reach 190 with the opening pair of skipper Peter Borren (31 off 15 balls) and Stephan Myburgh
(63 off 23 balls) giving them a flying start.
Myburgh carted seven sixes and four boundaries while Borren blasted the same number of fours and two sixes as they smacked the Irish bowlers all over the ground. The duo made 91 runs in six overs, a new T20 record for powerplays.
The rout started as early as the second over when Irish right-arm off-spinner Andy McBrine went for four sixes while right-arm seamer Alex Cusack was smashed around for 22 runs in the fourth over of the innings.
Even though Borren departed inside the sixth over, Wesley Barresi (40 off 22 balls) picked up from where his skipper had left off.
However, Myburgh was dismissed soon after making a blistering half-century and Logan van Beek (one) followed suit with the Dutch on 100-3 in the eighth over.
Still requiring over 15 runs per over, it was up to Barresi and Tom Cooper (45 from15 balls) to get the Dutch over the finishing line.
Tom struck only one boundary but it was because he was only interested in sixes. Barresi, on the other hand, kept on playing his part exceedingly well hitting three fours and three sixes.
Tom and Barresi added 61 runs for the fourth wicket in just four overs to remarkably bring down the run rate. Tom thumped half a dozen sixes.
The game started turning in Netherlands’ favour in the 11th over, bowled by Irish left-arm spinner George Dockrell. Cooper bludgeoned him for four sixes to take the game away from Ireland.
Even after Cooper was dismissed in the 12th over, Barresi carried on with his demolition job and remained unbeaten alongside Ben Cooper, Tom’s brother, undefeated on nine.
With three needed from four balls, Barresi hit the winning six over the mid-wicket off right-arm medium-pace bowler Tim Murtagh to spark wild celebrations in the dugout and send the Sylhet Divisional Stadium in a frenzy.
Earlier, Ireland rode on a 101-run partnership between Andrew Poynter (57 from 38 balls) and Kevin O’Brien (42 not out) to post 189-4 in 20 overs.
The fourth-wicket pair added 101 runs in the last 7.3 overs to take the Irish to a competitive score after skipper William Porterfield had provided a fine start striking 47 from 32 balls.
Ed Joyce chipped in with 28 but the real push came in the last 10 overs, courtesy of Poynter and O’Brien, who faced just 16 balls and smashed two fours and four sixes.
Poynter blasted four boundaries and as many sixes but in the end it proved to be inadequate as the Dutch took the fifth edition of the ICC World T20 by storm.
BRIEF SCORES
Ireland 189-4 in 20 overs (AD Poynter 57, W Porterfield 47, KJ O’Brien 42 not out; MAA Jamil 2-26) v Netherlands 193-4 in 13.5 overs (SJ Myburgh 63, T Cooper 45, W Barresi 40 not out, P Borren 31; KJ O’Brien 2-29).
Result: Netherlands won by 6 wickets.
Man of the match: SJ Myburgh (NED)
-With New Age input
