If Pakistan bowlers had a harrowing time against Virat Kohli in spite of keeping him quiet early on, one can only wonder how arduous the task could become for The Netherlands’ bowling attack.
India play the Dutchmen in their second Group 2 clash of this T20 World Cup in Sydney on Thursday.
Kohli — having regained form — would obviously like to continue in the same fashion as Sunday, but for the men in Orange, it’s not just about the need to keep Kohli at bay.
They are also looking to learn the nuances of batting from Kohli after watching him produce a superlative 82 not out that took India home against Pakistan at the MCG on Sunday night. “Kohli’s performance on Sunday night was obviously exceptional and just proves again why he is so great,” Ryan Campbell, The Netherlands’ high-performance consultant for this World Cup, told The Telegraph on Tuesday.
“More importantly, Kohli showed the world that in T20 cricket, a batsman with great technique can be as dangerous as all the hitters and so-called power-hitters and finishers. He proved that a classical batsman can still do the job and that’s what my boys will hopefully learn from what they saw the other night.”
For captain Scott Edwards and Co, playing against India is a challenge they seem to be relishing. Still, they are aware of the severity of the pressure that Kohli and the rest of the team could put them under.
“We, of course, have our plans for Kohli. We have spent a lot of time on analysis and we will have plans for every batsman. We need to think about what best our bowlers can do and what are their best lines and lengths.
“Now, the Indian cricket team is a wonderful example of a brilliant T20 side and they have had lots of experience obviously with the IPL. So we know we’ll be put under pressure, no doubt.
“But what a wonderful challenge it would be for our young kids to run in and bowl against one of the world’s best batting line-ups. Hopefully, our boys can stand up to it,” Campbell, who represented Australia in two ODIs and Hong Kong in three T20Is, emphasised.
An eye on IPL
The Netherlands cricketers also believe that an impressive showing against India on Thursday could well help them catch the eye of some of the IPL teams as well.
“It’s the dream of every player around the world to be a part of the IPL,” Campbell stated. “An Associate team player doesn’t get enough opportunities to be picked by franchises around the world, which to me is just ridiculous.
Too many of these franchisee leagues just look at the same old players over and over again instead of doing their research.
“But yes, you do want to be impressive in front of the Indian fans and on Indian television. A kid like Bas de Leede, who bats at No.3, bowls at around 140kmph, and is a very good fielder, stands a fine opportunity to be picked up in the IPL or in any other franchisee leagues around the world.
“Our focus will be on putting up a good performance. And if that performance goes well and something good comes out of it, hopefully, to see a Dutchman showing up in the IPL, that would be awesome,” he said.
