Little time to mull over losses at T20 WC: Ackermann

For the Netherlands, a three-wicket defeat to Pakistan in its opening Group-A match of the T20 World Cup in Colombo was a case of what-ifs. What if Max O’Dowd had held onto Faheem Ashraf’s catch in the penultimate over when Pakistan still needed 23 more runs? What if the Dutch side hadn’t lost seven wickets for 42 runs and managed to get to a total in the range of 165?

As gut-wrenching as the slender loss was, the Netherlands can’t afford to let these doubts linger for long. On Tuesday morning, Scott Edwards and Co. will take on Namibia at the Arun Jaitley Stadium, a chance for either side to get off the mark in a group also featuring India, Pakistan and USA.

All-rounder Colin Ackermann, one of the Netherlands’ more experienced heads, stressed the need for the team to look ahead. 

“It was naturally a very disappointing result for us. But the nature of this tournament is that the games come thick and fast. So, we’ve parked that,” the South Africa-born Ackermann, 34, told the media on Monday.

“Part of the DNA of the Netherlands team is that we take ownership of our performances and our roles, and we learn from past experiences. When we got off the bus in Delhi, coach Ryan Cook said the past is the past — there’s nothing we can do about it — and we must look forward to the next game.”

While the Netherlands has pulled off a couple of giant-killing highs in recent World Cups, it continues to grapple with the lack of consistent opportunities against top nations.

“The one thing lacking is regular exposure against bigger teams,” Ackermann rued. “Coming into this tournament, our last match against a full-member nation was against Bangladesh in August. So, that’s something we’re trying to change.”