The Netherlands have already shown glimpses of their immense ceiling so far in the 2023 World Cup.
While they have lost three of their four matches to be placed close to the bottom of the points table, they notched up a excellent win over South Africa and have managed to fight hard in the other games as well.
The Netherlands will face one of their biggest tests yet on Wednesday, October 25, when they lock horns with Australia at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi. Pat Cummins‘ men haven’t been at their best either, but they’ve managed to amass a two-match winning streak heading into this contest.
Scott Edwards and Co. are known to be completely against the words “upset” and “Associate”, so they’ll be viewing this clash as another game in which they can get closer to their knockout dream. However, they will be realistic and will know that they need to play out of their skins to beat the Aussies.
Here are three things the Netherlands need to do right to beat Australia in the 2023 World Cup.
#3 The openers must play more positively
Colin Ackermann has played a couple of important knocks at No. 3, but the openers and No. 4 Bas de Leede haven’t fired with the bat so far.
Max O’Dowd has managed just 55 runs in four innings at a strike rate of 57.89, while Vikramjit Singh has recorded 70 runs at a strike rate of 60.34. Both batters are perfectly capable of playing their shots, having displayed the same in various matches over the last year or two.
O’Dowd and Vikramjit need to shed their caution in the powerplay and play with more intent. By upping their strike rates, they will be able to put pressure on Mitchell Starc and Pat Cummins, who haven’t been in full rhythm with the ball. That will also relieve some of the burden on the Netherlands’ middle order.
Against a team like Australia, the Dutch openers won’t be able to dig themselves out of a dot-ball hole.
#2 The Dutchmen need to play out Adam Zampa without taking too many risks
Poll : Can the Netherlands beat Australia on Wednesday?
12 votes
Edited by Sai Krishna
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