The Netherlands reaches ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier semi-final despite going down to Canada by four wickets by ICC Media Release

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Event:

ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier 2008

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DateLine: 3rd August 2008

 

Dutch stun Kenya in tournament opener while Ireland holds nerves to beat Scotland

 

Ryan ten Doeschate, Andre Botha and Harvir Baidwan star performers of the day

 

Canada defeated the Netherlands by four wickets but failed to stop the Dutch from qualifying for the semi-final of the ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier from Group B at Stormont in Belfast, Ireland on Saturday.

 

Canada achieved the 98-run target in 19.3 overs but it allowed the Netherlands, who defeated Kenya in the tournament opener by 19 runs, to maintain a positive net run-rate which will come into play if Kenya beats Canada on Sunday afternoon.

 

Kenya needs to beat Canada roughly by 12 runs or with nine balls to spare to secure a place in the last four though the exact calculations will only be made after the first innings of the match which starts at 1300 (local time).

 

In the feature match of the day which went down to the wire in front of a good crowd and in near-perfect conditions, Ireland held its nerves to beat Scotland on the penultimate ball by four wickets after it required 14 off the last two overs and nine off the last six deliveries.

 

Canada bowled accurately and fielded sharply to bowl the Netherlands out for 97 in 19.3 overs after the European side won the toss and elected to bat first. Fast bowler Harvir Baidwan, later named man of the match, bowled intelligently to grab 4-19 while Henry Osinde took 2-21.

 

Canada almost made a mess of its chase when is slumped from 58-1 to 82-5 before it eased to victory in 19.3 overs with four wickets to spare.

 

Sunil Dhaniram (26) and Geoffrey Barnett (21) batted well while John Davison (19) and Abdool Samad (18) made useful contributions in the overall context of the match.

 

The Group A match between Ireland and Scotland had all the twists and turns as the top-seeded hosts achieved victory over its traditional rivals with one ball and four wickets to spare.

 

Fast bowler Alex Cusack bagged 4-21 and all-rounder Andre Botha picked up 3-18 as Scotland ’s decision to bat first backfired as it was bowled out for 117 on the last ball of the 20th over.

 

Neil McCallum with 27 and captain Ryan Watson with 24 were the main run-getters for Scotland.

 

But Scotland made a spirited fight back to reduce Ireland to 109-6 with nine required off the last over. Andrew White struck a boundary off the first ball and picked up the remaining runs off the next four deliveries as Ireland won with one ball to spare.

 

White finished with an invaluable 11 not out but it was Botha who top-scored for Ireland with a 34-ball 38 that included a four and a six. For his 3-18 and 38 runs, he was declared man of the match.

 

Bermuda, the other team in the group, will play both its matches on Sunday – against Scotland at 0930 (local time) and against Ireland at 1630 (local time).

 

Meanwhile, in the opening match of the day, Essex all-rounder Ryan ten Doeschate produced a good all-round performance to help the Netherlands defeat second-seeded Kenya by 19 runs.

 

Ten Doeschate, named man of the match, scored a 45-ball 56 that included a four and three sixes as the Netherlands collected 153-5 after being put into bat. He then returned figures of 3-27 as Kenya succumbed to the Netherlands ’ accurate bowling and alert fielding to be restricted to 134-9.

 

Besides ten Doeschate, fast bowler Edgar Schiferli also bowled to a teasing line and length to finish with 3-23 while, for Kenya, captain Steve Tikolo was the only batsman who offered some resistance while scoring 37 from 33 balls with three fours and a six.

 

At stake in the Belfast tournament are two or possibly three places in the ICC World Twenty20 2009 being staged in England . Both finalists will qualify for the tournament which will take place at Lord’s, The Oval and Trent Bridge next June.

 

The third place to be decided by a third and fourth-place play-off is dependent on Zimbabwe Cricket’s Board ratifying a decision taken by its officials during ICC Annual Conference week, to step back from the tournament.

 

Scores in brief:

 

 

Group A

 

 

Ireland beat Scotland by four wickets

 

Scotland 117 in 20 overs (Neil McCallum 27, Ryan Watson 24; Alex Cusack 4-21, Andre Botha 3-18, Kevin O'Brien 2-29)

 

Ireland 118-6 in 19.5 overs (Andre Botha 38, Niall O'Brien 22; Glenn Rogers 2-15, Dewald Nel 2-19)

 

 

Group B

 

 

Netherlands beat Kenya by 19 runs

 

Netherlands 153-5 in 20 overs (Ryan ten Doeschate 56, Darron Reekers 29, Eric Szwarzcyniski 28; Hiren Varaiya 2-24)

 

Kenya 134-9 in 20 overs (Steve Tikolo 37; Edgar Schiferli 3-23, Ryan ten Doeschate 3-27, Peter Borren 2-36)

 

 

Canada beat the Netherlands by four wickets

 

Netherlands 97 all out in 18.4 overs (Peter Borren 37 not out; Harvir Baidwan 4-19, Henry Osinde 2-21)

 

Canada 99-6 in 19.3 overs (Sunil Dhaniram 26, Geoffrey Barnett 21; Peter Borren 2-19)

 

 

Sunday’s fixtures:

 

0930 Scotland v Bermuda

 

1300 Kenya v Canada

 

1630 Ireland v Bermuda

 

 

Full scorecards are available online at:

 

www.iccworldtwenty20qualifier.com

 

 

For more information go to:

 

www.iccworldtwenty20qualifier.com