The Netherlands arguably produced the biggest upset of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023, defeating the unbeaten South Africans to register their first win of the campaign. Defending a total of 245 runs, in a 43-over-per-side contest, the Dutch bowled out the Proteas for just 207 runs. From skipper Scott Edwards to pacer Logan van Beek and spinner Roelof van der Merwe, there were many match-winners for the Netherlands in the contest. One of them was seamer Paul van Meekeren, a guy who delivered food through Uber Eats in 2020 to make ends meet.
Van Meekeren picked up two important wickets of Aiden Markram and Marco Jansen to deliver South Africa crucial blows in the Netherlands’ bid to defend the total of 245 runs. While the result sent shockwaves across the cricketing universe, it’s the story of players like Van Meekeren that makes Netherlands’ victory even more respectful.
In his own words from a tweet in 2020, Van Meekeren revealed that he was delivering food for Uber Eats after the Men’s T20 World Cup was postponed in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Should’ve been playing cricket today now I’m delivering Uber eats to get through the winter months!! Funny how things change hahaha keep smiling people,” he had posted on social media.
In an interview, Van Meekeren admitted that he had to take up a job at Uber Eats to make ends meet as cricket had witnessed an indefinite break due to the pandemic.
“I had enough savings but they’re savings that I don’t want to touch,” he told The Cricketerduring a chat three years ago. “But I’ve dipped so deep into my reserves now that I had to think about what I was going to do this winter, because there isn’t going to be any cricket. I need some income,” van Meekeren said.
“At the start, I was looking for a job to just cover the simple things like petrol, food, rent, phone bills and those kinds of things,” he said. “But then, I also wanted to be as flexible as possible if any cricket opportunity did come up – whether with the Dutch team, franchise cricket or a chance to train with a county. That’s what happened and I’ve been very open about it to my friends: I was never ashamed of the fact that I was going to do it,” he added.
Van Meekeren, a tenacious character, both on and off the field, is the perfect example of the resilience that Dutch cricketers have shown to come this far. Van Meekeren’s rise from a chapter in his career that he would not want to go back to, could be a lesson of fortitude and commitment for many others like him.
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