Van der Merwe stars as Netherlands clinch seventh place

Roelof van der Merwe's 4 for 20 and 25 with the bat trumped Sompal Kami's 4 for 24 and 36 - the second-highest score in a low-scorer - and helped Netherlands defend 189 and clinch the seventh place in the World Cup qualifier.

Van der Merwe's effort took his wickets tally to 16 - the most by a bowler in List A games in the tournament. Seventeen-year-old Sandeep Lamichhane - fourth on the list with 13 wickets - took two wickets in the match and made a stubborn 14 not out off 38 balls but it could not stop Netherlands from sealing their first win of the tournament.

After opting to bat first, Netherlands had slumped to 48 for 4 in 14 overs, Kami accounting for three of those wickets. Bas de Leede top-scored with 39 off 91 balls and found support from van der Merwe and wicketkeeper-batsman Scott Edwards, who made 25 runs each. When de Leede became Kami's fourth victim, Netherlands were 144 for 8 in 42.1 overs, but Pieter Seelaar and Shane Snater ensured their side not only batted 50 overs but also posted 189, which proved more than enough in the end.

In reply, Nepal's top order also fell away quickly, leaving the middle order to do much of the heavy lifting. Captain Paras Khadka and 18-year-old Dipendra Singh Airee, who was central to Nepal gaining ODI status for the first time, came together at 33 for 2 and added 18 for the third wicket before van der Merwe removed Khadka for 22. When Seelaar had Airee lbw for 25, Nepal were 74 for 6.

Kami then gave his team hope with 36 off 53 balls, including three fours and six. Karan KC and Lamichhane provided support but seamer Fred Klaassen turned the game in Netherlands' favour when he had Kami holing out in the 38th over. Lamichhane and No. 11 Lalit Rajbanshi lasted seven overs before Timm van der Gugten applied the finishing touches and consigned Nepal to eighth place.