Zimpapers Logo

JOHANNESBURG. — The Netherlands cricket team made it clear on Saturday their decision to postpone their series against the Proteas had less to do with safety concerns than the uncertainty created by the travel bans that have been instituted.

Cricket South Africa and the Koninklijke Nederlandse Cricket Bond released a statement saying they had agreed to “defer” the remainder of the ODI series due to the spread of a new strain of Covid.

That means the matches set for Centurion yesterday and the Wanderers on Wednesday will no longer take place, with the first ODI at SuperSport Park having been washed out two overs into the Netherlands’ pursuit of the Proteas’ target of 278.

“We have been taken care of by Cricket South Africa in a magnificent way.

“They have done everything to make us feel safe,” Netherlands manager Steven van Dijk said on Saturday.

“So it’s not that we feel unsafe at all. The bubble has been executed perfectly. The only insecurity we have felt is not being able to fly home. “So we have not been able to end the series because there is so much uncertainty. Some guys need to fly to New Zealand, others to England, which is a problem, the Netherlands too, and people had to sit for hours at the airport.

“The players are getting phone calls from home, worried messages. Some of them have young kids at home or pregnant partners, so we are looking at all the options for flights — two people getting tickets here, another three there.” — The Citizen