T20 World Cup 2022, ZIM vs NED: Netherlands open account with a thumping win

Netherlands players celebrating a dismissal [Source: AP]

Riding on a clinical bowling performance, the Netherlands brushed aside Zimbabwe by five wickets in the 23rd Super 12 encounter of the T20 World Cup in Adelaide on Wednesday. Zimbabwe's World Cup journey is all but over with this crushing defeat. 

The Dutch pacers restrict Zimbabwe to a paltry total

The decision to bat first on a fresh Adelaide deck instantly backfired on Zimbabwe, as their top order was dismantled in no time by Brandon Glover and Paul van Meekeren. Sean Williams and Sikandar Raza tried their best to stabilise the innings, but their efforts suffered a massive setback, with Meekeren getting the prized scalp of Williams in the twelfth over. 

Paul van Meekeren after dismissing Ryan Burl [Source: AP]

Raza fought the battle alone afterwards, but it was all over for Zimbabwe with his dismissal, executed by none other than Bas de Leede in the fifteenth over. Raza hammered an aggressive 24-ball 40 with the help of three fours and as many sixes before being caught at the cow corner. 

The Dutch soon got rid of the Zimbabwean tail, bundling them out for an under-par 117 in 19.2 overs. Van Meekeren recorded a spectacular three-for, while Glover and De Leede claimed two wickets each. 

O'Dowd and Cooper bat Zimbabwe out of the game

Chasing 118, the Netherlands suffered an early setback, losing swashbuckling opener Stephan Myburgh for eight in the fourth over. However, the veteran duo of Max O'Dowd and Tom Cooper sailed the Dutch ship smoothly, adding vital 73 runs for the second wicket. 

Max O'Dowd played a match-winning knock [Source: Twitter]

O'Dowd continued his stellar run and slammed a brilliant 47-ball 52 including eight fours and one six. On the other hand, Cooper finally found his mojo, contributing handy 32 runs off 29 deliveries. 

After Luke Jongwe dismissed Cooper, the Zimbabwe seamers removed O'Dowd, Colin Ackermann and Scott Edwards quickly to make the chase trickier for the Netherlands. But it was too late, as Bas de Leede (12* off 12) got the Dutch over the finish line with two overs to spare. 

Brief Scores

Zimbabwe: 117 (19.2)
Sikandar Raza 40 (24), Sean Williams 28 (23);
Paul van Meekeren 3/29 (4), Bas de Leede 2/14 (4)

Netherlands: 120/5 (18)
Max O'Dowd 52 (47), Tom Cooper 32 (29);
Richard Ngarava 2/18 (4), Blessing Muzarabani 2/23 (4)

Netherlands won by five wickets. 

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