If the adage “the bigger they are, the harder they fall” has any merit, Netherlands will know no.1-ranked Sri Lanka is the Mohammad Irfan of their group. Having wangled an electric surprise to barge into the Super 10s, Netherlands now take aim at the shins of giants. If they can strike a forceful enough blow over the next nine days, they might create the sort of upset that energises the tournament by placing relevance on every result. The first phase of the tournament had spawned considerable buzz around the less fancied teams in world cricket, and as the sole Associate representative in the main draw, Netherlands will not want to squander public goodwill with meek showings.
What makes this particular match a less likely candidate for an upset than others in the group, however, is not only Sri Lanka’s T20 aptitude, but their general skill at putting weaker teams away. Over the years, they have revelled in crushing Associates. Much of this is to do with the unorthodoxy of their attack. South Africa had found Lasith Malinga perplexing enough, but they had faced him in a limited-overs series in Sri Lanka eight months ago. Most Netherlands batsmen will never have faced the likes of Malinga or Ajantha Mendis – if he plays – in their lives.
Sri Lanka’s batsmen will not allow their standards to subside either. After his tour of Bangladesh, Kumar Sangakkara could pen the manual on bashing weaker attacks, and Mahela Jayawardene has not historically allowed inexperienced bowlers considerable leeway either. The Netherlands bowlers will also have to formulate a strategy to counter Kusal Perera’s unique approach.
If Sri Lanka have the parts of their T20 machine humming, Netherlands will likely await their first victory over a Test side in this tournament, but if the breakneck chase against Ireland proved anything, Netherlands will not baulk at attempting the improbable.
Form guide
(last five matches, most recent first)
Netherlands: WLWWW
Sri Lanka: WWWWW
In the spotlight
Netherlands’ batting had mostly been about Tom Cooper and Stephan Myburgh in the group stage, but against Ireland, wicketkeeper-batsman Wesley Barresi had played a crucial hand, walloping 40 not out from 22 to send his team into raptures. Formerly a first-class cricketer in South Africa, Barresi has lately only played competitive cricket for Netherlands, and if his team are to challenge some of the bigger sides, less well-known players like Barresi must make impactful contributions.
Tillakaratne Dilshan arrived in Bangladesh with a cloud over his fitness, but after three mediocre innings – including in the two warm-ups – it is his form that is the bigger concern. On Saturday, Dilshan fell in familiar fashion: swiping across the line to let a straight ball through his defences. He might see the next match as an opportunity to rebound, against a friendlier attack, but Lahiru Thirimanne awaits a game in the dugout.
Pitch and conditions
The Chittagong pitch has often been slow and low, but on Saturday, the surface was not given to turn, rewarding the seamers instead. On the eve of the match the track appeared to have a tinge of green, but that may be shaved off on match-day, and in any case, the New Zealand v South Africa match will have preceded it.
Teams news
Seam bowler Logan van Beek is yet to contribute meaningfully with the ball to Netherlands’ campaign, and he may be under pressure from right-armer Tom Heggelman. Elsewhere, they may not want to change the XI that brought that famous Sylhet win.
Netherlands (probable) 1 Michael Swart, 2 Stephan Myburgh, 3 Wesley Barresi (wk), 4 Peter Borren (capt), 5 Tom Cooper, 6 Ben Cooper, 7 Mudassar Bukhari, 8 Logan van Beek, 9 Timm van der Gugten, 10 Pieter Seelaar, 11 Ahsan Malik
Sri Lanka may consider bringing in Rangana Herath in for Ajantha Mendis, after Mendis had a poor outing against South Africa
Sri Lanka (probable): 1 Tillakaratne Dilshan, 2 Kusal Perera, 3 Mahela Jayawardene, 4 Kumar Sangakkara (wk), 5. Dinesh Chandimal (capt), 6. Angelo Mathews, 7. Thisara Perera, 8. Nuwan Kulasekara, 9 Sachithra Senanayake, 10 Lasith Malinga, 11 Ajantha Mendis/Rangana Herath
Stats and trivia
Sri Lanka have now won 13 matches on the trot, across all formats
Tom Cooper is the tournament’s highest scorer with 151 from three innings
