T20 World Cup: All-rounder de Leede powers Netherlands to 7-wicket win over Namibia

NEW DELHI: Bas de Leede’s relationship with Delhi has been complicated. The last time he walked out at the Arun Jaitley Stadium, the scoreboard was left rattled and the record books rewritten for all the wrong reasons.

In Oct 2023, he had been at the receiving end as Glenn Maxwell unfurled the fastest ODI World Cup hundred, a 44-ball assault that left the Dutch allrounder with figures of 2/115 in his 10 overs, a spell that topped the charts for most runs conceded in ODI cricket.That was a day de Leede would rather forget. Cricket, though, has a way of circling back. On Tuesday, the same venue offered de Leede a chance to author a very different memory and he seized it with quiet authority.

De Leede produced a performance that neatly stitched together control, composure and conviction as the Netherlands outclassed Namibia by seven wickets in their Group A clash of the T20 World Cup here at the Arun Jaitley Stadium.

The win was completed with two overs to spare.

De Leede’s fingerprints were all over the contest. With the ball, he struck at precisely the moments Namibia threatened to lift the tempo. His three-over spell cost just 20 runs and brought two key wickets of Namibian skipper Gerhard Erasmus and power-hitter JJ Smit.

The Dutch allrounder capped his impact by effecting the run-out of Ruben Trumpelmann, a feisty lower-order ball striker. Namibia kept searching for acceleration but wickets kept falling regularly, blunting any late flourish.Then came de Leede the batter, walking in at No.3 and anchoring the chase with an unbeaten 72 off 48 balls. His 70-run partnership with Colin Ackermann, stitched in 51 deliveries, quietly tilted the contest beyond Namibia’s reach.

There was range in de Leede’s strokeplay, restraint when needed, and timely power — five fours and four sixes — when the moment demanded assertion.Asked about that bruising afternoon in 2023, de Leede dismissed any lingering memories. “I’m pretty forgetful in such matters and it wasn’t at the back of my mind. I’m not fussed about it,” he said.Brief scores: Netherlands 159/3 (De Leede 72*) beat Namibia 156/8 (Loftie-Eaton 42, de Leede 2-20) by 7 wickets.