The Netherlands triumphed over the USA twice within a fortnight, exhibiting nearly identical narratives. The USA batters once again revealed their vulnerabilities against a relentless pace bowling unit that dismantled their simple chase for the second consecutive time. The Dutch uncovered a new hero in their defense of a meager total of 206, fast bowler Kyle Klein. The 23-year-old’s penetrating new ball spell left the USA on the back foot in what should have been a straightforward chase given their batting depth. Klein concluded with impressive figures of 4 for 32, earning him his first Player of the Match title in their 27-run victory. USA’s captain Monank Patel shone with an outstanding innings of 66 off 79 balls but could not avert the inevitable as the Dutch dismissed half of the USA lineup with over 100 runs still required.
Vivian Kingma ensured a disastrous beginning for the USA as Steven Taylor slashed poorly outside off to a delivery that straightened just enough to catch his inside edge. The former captain has now played nine ODIs without a half-century to his name, marking his second duck of the tournament. Smit Patel, who had demonstrated fine form with a pair of half-centuries against Canada and a gritty 38 against the Netherlands in the preceding match, appeared out of sorts during his nervous short stay at the crease. Klein delivered a damaging in-dipper that struck his front pad in line, freeing him from his woes. The bowler returned in his subsequent over to employ similar strategies against Aaron Jones, trapping him in front to leave the USA in chaos at 39 for 3. Milind Kumar was unable to replicate his heroics from the previous match against the Netherlands, as he deflected one onto his stumps from an innocuous delivery by Paul Van Meekeren.
Following a reprieve at short-midwicket on his second delivery, Monank batted with the grace of a breath of fresh air amid the turmoil surrounding him. While the Dutch continued to penetrate from the other end, the USA captain launched a counter-offensive with remarkable assurance on a wicket that offered variable bounce. His confidence was bolstered largely by his solid technique that enabled him to negotiate the good deliveries while capitalizing on anything loose, as demonstrated by his five elegantly struck boundaries during the PowerPlay.
A stable fifth wicket partnership with Shayan Jahangir saw him accelerate following the introduction of spin. He maneuvered one through short fine to reach his half-century before launching Aryan Dutt over cow corner. With the USA requiring approximately 100 runs at a comfortable asking rate of 4, Jahangir made a careless run out to shake USA again. Monank departed two overs later, returning one directly to Dutt, leaving an arduous task for the lower order, who had not instilled much faith on this tour.
Harmeet Singh briefly troubled the Dutch with a couple of sixes, but the game was virtually over for the USA after Van Meekeren had him pop one up to mid-off with still 70 runs needed. Klein reappeared to clean up the lower order just as he did with the new ball, delivering full and direct deliveries.
The modest target of 207 was established through the phenomenal performance of the USA bowlers, who had been consistently effective, unlike the batters. The USA chose Nosthush Kenjige’s left-arm spin to commence proceedings with the new ball in slightly overcast conditions. He quickly exited the attack after Michael Levitt struck him for a six down the ground in the third over of the innings. Levitt’s energetic batting was a direct contrast to Max O’Dowd’s steadfastness at the crease. Levitt found himself on a roll with five additional boundaries to his name during the PowerPlay, swiftly reaching 31 before he was dismissed by Abhishek Paradkar.
Vikramjit Malik’s flamboyant drive off Milind Kumar sparked a mini collapse as the Dutch lost three wickets for just 17 runs. Steven Taylor bowled Musa Ahmed with a rapid arm ball before Juanoy Drysdale edged off the Netherlands captain, the bane of the USA in their previous match where the Dutch similarly crumbled. O’Dowd persevered with his painstaking innings, achieving his half-century off 103 balls with a clip through the leg side off a full toss delivered by Drysdale.
O’Dowd’s difficulties meant that Noah Croes had to kick into high gear from the start. A well-timed drive through point on his third ball of the innings motivated him to operate with vivacity in his play. A skillfully executed reverse sweep off Harmeet propelled him to 27 in quick succession, but the left-arm spinner claimed his revenge on the following delivery, inducing a leading edge that went to short-midwicket. Harmeet maintained pressure on the Netherlands, forcing a false shot from Klein, whom he had contained for nine previous balls without conceding a run.
With four overs remaining and merely 198 on the board, O’Dowd was unable to deliver the finishing blow the Dutch would have wished for. They astonishingly lost their last four wickets for just eight runs, as Shadley Van Shalkwyk and Kenjige each took two wickets to deny the Netherlands a final flourish. O’Dowd accumulated 77 runs in his lengthy innings of 126 deliveries, which ultimately sufficed for a flourishing Netherlands that clinched their fourth consecutive victory in the tri-series.
Brief scores: Netherlands 207 all out in 49.1 overs (Max O’Dowd 77; Harmeet Singh 2-25, Nosthush Kenjige 2-33) defeated USA 179 all out in 45.5 overs (Monank Patel 66; Kyle Klein 4-32, Paul van Meekeren 3-31) by 27 runs.
Image Source: Paul Van Meekeren @ Instagram
