Cricket World Cup 2023, PAK vs NED: de Leede's show in vain, Pakistan win

Pakistan defeated the Netherlands after the Dutch threatened to chase the target down with half-centuries from Vikramjit Singh and Bas de Leede. Pakistan's professional bowling prevailed eventually

Bas de Leede’s all-round show went in vain as Pakistan’s professional bowling overpowered the Dutch to earn an easy 81 runs victory in the second match of the ODI World Cup 2023 at the Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium in Hyderabad on Friday, October 7. 

The Dutch threatened to chase down 287 set up by the Pakistani team, but apart from Vikramjit Singh (52 off 67) and de Leede (67 off 68), no other batter from the Netherlands were able to get in and play an innings of substance and quality. 

The last wicket partnership of 21 runs between two fast bowlers Logan van Beek and Paul van Meekeren was only to make Pakistan’s net run rate a bit less imposing on other teams after this big win. Haris Rauf was the pick of the bowlers for the men in green as he finished with figures of 3/43 in his nine overs. 

Earlier in the day, Bas de Leede picked four wickets and they came in bunches of two each in only two overs of his two spells as the Netherlands bowled Pakistan out for 286 in 49 overs. 

Asked to bat first after Dutch skipper Scott Edwards won the toss and decided to bowl first, Pakistan lost their top three in the powerplay with the team score 38/3 in 9.1 overs. 

Mohammad Rizwan and Saud Shakeel then built a partnership of 120 before Shakeel was picked up by Aryan Dutt who broke the partnership, Shakeel scored 32-ball fifty while Rizwan notched up his as well. But de Leede came into action in the 29th over and removed both Rizwan and Iftikhar Ahmed. 

Mohammad Nawaz and Shadab Khan then put together a decent partnership of 64 runs to take Pakistan out of trouble and past the 250 mark towards a respectable total. However, de Leeded in his second burst got Shadab to break this stand and removed Hasan Ali in the same over to dent the Pakistani hopes of crossing 300. 

Eventually, Nawaz was run out and Pakistan dragged their way to 286 with tailenders getting a boundary here and single there. While Rizwan and Shakeel jointly top-scored for Pakistan with 68, de Leede was the top wicket-taker for the Dutch with his 4/62.