Max O'Dowd turns up the volume on Netherlands' World Cup hopes

Max O'Dowd can pump up the tempo - both on and off the field. He is Netherlands' top run-getter in ODIs and T20Is. He has also been DJing since he was a teenager. Music runs in O'Dowd's family. His grandmother was a pianist, his grandfather played some musical instruments too, and his uncle was an opera singer.

Even on the cricket field, he didn't have to look too far for inspiration. His father, Alex O'Dowd, represented Auckland and Northern Districts in New Zealand domestic cricket. Max was born in Auckland and lived in Campbells Bay until he was five and then moved to The Hague, where his mother Christine is from, in the Netherlands. When he was around 13, he came back to New Zealand and participated in local development tournaments there, dreaming of becoming a Black Cap. That didn't come to pass, but he did get an opportunity to play for Netherlands when he was 21, thanks to his mother's Dutch heritage, and hasn't looked back since.

O'Dowd started in the middle order for Netherlands before sliding up and finding his feet at the top. He is strong down the ground and through the off side, and has learnt to harness those strengths in the powerplay.

He will turn 32 in March and seems to be entering his peak as a batter. In his most recent ODI innings, in June 2025, he cracked an unbeaten 158, spearheading Netherlands' successful chase of 370 against Scotland - the third-highest chase in the format. O'Dowd was also Netherlands' top run-getter in the men's T20 World Cup Europe region competition, which his team won last year.

"Definitely that 150 against Scotland was crucial, and it was a way I haven't batted before in one-day cricket - I just had to bat a certain way in order to chase these runs," O'Dowd says. "That showed me that I can do it [at the top level]. I knew I could always do it but I just hadn't done it. So it was nice to kind of tick that off the list, and hopefully I can do something like that in this T20 World Cup.

"It [becoming an opener] was a long process," O'Dowd says. "I remember sitting with Cambo [Ryan Campbell, former Netherlands coach] and he said there would be an opportunity to open the batting, but I was a bit unsure at the time. I'd never done it in my life - I was batting at No. 7 or 8 earlier and bowling offspin - but I think it [opening] was probably the best thing I did, because it gave me an opportunity to do well and I had the license to go out there and hit with just two fielders outside the circle."

O'Dowd also acknowledged his weakness - he has struggled to sweep the ball in the past -and has overcome it with help from his captain and house-mate Scott Edwards, with whom he has lived for five years.

"Scotty is one of the best sweepers going around, so for me we just worked hard on trying to sweep the hardest ball possible, which, I guess, is a fast yorker," O'Dowd says. "So we felt that if we can really work on nailing that, most other balls would come quite simple. I think being able to hit 360 [degrees] in India is vital because guys will have their plans for you, they'll set fields for you and the sweep allows you to manipulate that. For me, it also opens up my strength down the ground."

O'Dowd and Edwards share a special bond to an extent that he feels he spends more time with Edwards than with his partner. "We are like a married couple," O'Dowd laughs and adds that he relishes beating Edwards at the board game Catan. He also credits Edwards and coach Ryan Cook for building a team culture that has brought the best out of players.

"The coaching staff, especially Ryan, has brought this team culture where you can excel in an environment, where no one really judges you," O'Dowd says. "Everyone is trying to make each other better, which is the key to any sports environment. It won't guarantee wins but it certainly helps."

Win or lose, that team culture continues to shine through and it has given them the belief that they are just as good as the top teams in the world. "Consistently playing against the big players makes you feel numb, which is important," O'Dowd says. "I remember when I first started to play England, [I'd] think, 'Wow! I'm playing against Jos Butler!' Whereas now when you play against England, you know your plans and [have] a way to beat them. Not just England but other teams too, and beating them builds confidence."

O'Dowd himself is more confident about his game after having a disappointing ODI World Cup in India in 2023, when he managed only 138 runs in nine innings at an average of 15.33 and strike rate just under 70. In between that tournament and the upcoming T20 World Cup, he has made some tweaks and improved his physical fitness, which he hopes will serve him better in the subcontinent this time.

"I think 2023 was probably my worst World Cup. I had quite a unique technique the last time a lot of people saw me in the 2023 World Cup, and it's quite different now," he says. "I'm a lot more still and my backlift is a bit straighter, so now I feel there's not as many moving parts. I don't think I was physically in the best shape during the 2023 World Cup, but now I'm physically much stronger. Hopefully, the stability allows me to create a straighter swing play, which is really important in India."

O'Dowd has also had opportunities to upskill by playing in T20 leagues around the world, including in Bangladesh, Canada and Nepal. In the lead-up to the T20 World Cup, he tuned up in Valsad, Gujarat, and then at the Super Kings Academy in Chennai during a camp that also included Texas Super Kings players such as Stephen Wiig.

"Playing on different kinds of surfaces helps you understand those small changes you need to make," O'Dowd says. "In the BPL, I worked with Woody [Julian Wood], who is one of the leaders in power-hitting. I got an understanding of how to create a bit of distance between hands and hips, and how you can swing, and [how] understanding that speed of the bat is really important. Also the way you swing the bat and the kind of connection at the end is really important. Woody is with Sri Lanka now and hopefully we can meet them in the semis and beat them there," he laughs.

O'Dowd believes that the new Europe-based T20 league, which will run out of Netherlands, Scotland, and Ireland, will nurture the next generation of cricketers and expand the talent pool in the region.

"There's lots of franchise cricket these days but I do feel a lot of European players, especially [from] Ireland, Scotland, Netherlands, tend to miss out on opportunities to play in these leagues," O'Dowd says. "I'm not quite sure why, because I think there's some quality players across all three teams.

"But the opportunity for guys to consistently play against the best players in the world, to have a guaranteed league every year, will give them that exposure. I've heard there's IPL teams that are going to be involved and for them to see the talent that's there, I think it's going to be a massive opportunity for fans as well to watch and really see the depth of European cricket."

But before that, Netherlands and O'Dowd are out to showcase their skills in the T20 World Cup in India and Sri Lanka. Discount them at your own peril.

"I just want to try and focus on my process and for the team, we've got high goals to go as far as we can in this tournament," O'Dowd says. "The batters have really upskilled and the bowlers are working well together, so I think it's a big opportunity for us to do something massive after the success in the last [ODI] World Cup here. We've got great connections with each other in this team. I'll play the music and if it brings us together, great. It's an awesome environment to be in."