In a shocking result, the Netherlands stunned South Africa with a 38-run victory in their ICC ODI World Cup 2023 match, marking their first time defeating a Test-playing nation in the ODI World Cup.
The match was delayed by two hours due to heavy rain, resulting in a 43-overs-per-side contest. South Africa won the toss and chose to bowl, capitalizing on favourable seam bowling conditions.
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The Dutch openers, Vikramjit Singh and Max O’Dowd, weathered the early storm before falling to South African pacers. The Netherlands found themselves struggling at 140/7 in the 34th over. While some Dutch batters made starts, none could trouble South Africa until Roelof van der Merwe entered at number 9.
Van der Merwe played some remarkable strokes and boosted the confidence of Scott Edwards. The pair added 64 runs for the 8th wicket, followed by an unbeaten 41-run partnership for the 9th wicket between skipper Edwards and Aryan Dutt.
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Dutch skipper Edwards scored a magnificent half-century (78* off 69 balls), van der Merwe contributed 29 runs off 19 balls. Dutt remained unbeaten with 23 runs off just 9 balls, shifting the momentum in favor of the Netherlands.
South Africa’s Ngidi, Rabada, and Jansen took a couple of wickets each, while Coetzee and Maharaj scalped one wicket apiece. Captain Scott Edwards displayed excellent leadership by rotating the bowlers effectively based on match-ups and conditions.
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South Africa struggled as wickets tumbled rapidly, reducing them to 44/4 at one point. Heinrich Klaasen (28 off 28) and David Miller added 45 runs for the 5th wicket, offering a glimmer of hope. However, Logan van Beek’s crucial wicket of Miller (43 off 52) in the 31st over ended any hopes of a South African comeback.
For the Netherlands, van Beek claimed 3 wickets, while van Meekren, van der Merwe, and de Leede took 2 wickets each. They bundled out South Africa for 207.
