It wasn't quite enough to win the match, but Ryan ten Doeschate's magnificent 119, and Netherlands' spirited batting which took them to 292, was clearly the talking point after the high-scoring game in Nagpur. There were many aspects to their innings which were impressive, and they set several memorable landmarks along the way. Despite all that, though, they couldn't prevent England from chasing down 293 and achieving the
third-highest successful run-chase in World Cups. Some of the highlights from the game:
Netherlands' total of 292 is their second-highest in World Cups, after the 314 for 4 they scored against Namibia in 2003. It's also the second-highest total conceded by England in World Cups: West Indies scored 300 against them in Barbados in 2007. Netherlands' score is also the second-highest by an Associate member against a Test team in ODIs, after Zimbabwe's 312 for 4 against Sri Lanka in the 1992 World Cup. (See table 1) ten Doeschate's 119 is also the second-highest by a batsman from an Associate team against a Test side in ODIs. The record stays with Dave Houghton, who scored an outstanding 142 in a losing cause against New Zealand in the 1987 World Cup. (See table 2) The way Netherlands paced their innings was exemplary: their run-rate hovered at around 4.50 almost throughout their innings. After 40 overs, it was 4.70; after 50, it touched 5.84, thanks to the fact that the last ten overs fetched 104. The way ten Doeschate upped the tempo was equally impressive: at the end of the 40th over, he had scored 67 off 83. In his last 27 balls, he blasted 52, with five fours and a six. England's fielding was utterly shambolic, but they made up for it with a well-planned run-chase - their lowest run-rate throughout the entire innings was 5.30. The century pushes ten Doeschate's overall ODI average to 71.21. In four World Cup innings, his scores read 57, 1, 70* and 119 - 247 runs at an average of 82.33. With the ball coming on to the bat, the Netherland batsmen also did well to use the pace of the delivery to get the runs. Of the 27 fours they scored, only seven came in front of the wicket; the rest were all behind square on either side, often courtesy deft flicks and nudges. England's wagon-wheel was quite different, with 11 out of 24 fours in front of the wicket. England's batting was generally impressive, but Kevin Pietersen's display wasn't entirely convincing. He needed 61 balls to score 39, and played out 41 dot balls, which is a third of the total dot in England's innings. Those numbers will need some improvement when England take on India in their next game.
Table 1: Highest scores by Associate teams v Full Members
| Team |
Score |
Versus |
Venue, year |
| Zimbabwe |
312 for 4 |
Sri Lanka |
New Plymouth, 1992 |
| Kenya |
285 for 9 |
Zimbabwe |
Nairobi, 2008 |
| Kenya |
284 for 7 |
Zimbabwe |
Bulawayo, 2006 |
| Sri Lanka |
276 for 4 |
Australia |
The Oval, 1975 |
| Kenya |
270 for 8 |
Zimbabwe |
Harare, 2009 |
Table 2: Highest individual scores by an Associate against a Full Member
| Batsman |
Score |
Versus |
Venue, year |
| Dave Houghton |
142 |
New Zealand |
Hyderabad, 1987 |
| Andy Flower |
115* |
Sri Lanka |
New Plymouth, 1992 |
| Jeremy Bray |
115* |
Zimbabwe |
Kingston, 2007 |
| John Davison |
111 |
West Indies |
Centurion, 2003 |
| William Porterfield |
108 |
Bangladesh |
Belfast, 2010 |
| Steve Tikolo |
102 |
Zimbabwe |
Nairobi, 2008 |
| Mehrab Hossain |
101 |
Zimbabwe |
Dhaka, 1999 |
S Rajesh is stats editor of ESPNcricinfo
