Amsterdam, July 8 (IANS) Former South Africa ODI captain Johan Botha has been appointed as a consultant to the Netherlands men’s cricket team for the upcoming ICC Cricket World Cup League 2 (CWCL2) matches against Namibia and Nepal later this month.

The matches are scheduled to be played at Kampong in Utrecht, starting on July 21. Botha, 44, represented South Africa in 78 ODIs and 40 T20Is, including captaining them in ten 50-over games.

He joins the Dutch setup immediately after resigning from his dual roles as head coach of Australian domestic side Queensland Bulls and Big Bash League (BBL) franchise Brisbane Heat, despite having a year left on his contract.

“I really look forward to joining the Netherlands team in this important period in the World Cup League 2 against Namibia and Nepal. Having tracked their progress over the past few years, it will be great to work with the players, coaches, and staff,” Botha said in a statement on Wednesday.

Welcoming the appointment, KNCB (Dutch Cricket Board) High Performance Board Member Sybrand Engelbrecht praised Botha’s extensive global coaching credentials. “We’re very pleased to have Johan on board. He is an extremely experienced coach, with stints at the PSL, CPL, MLC, Big Bash and Queensland cricket,” he said.

Botha had coached the Brisbane Heat and Queensland Bulls for the past two seasons after replacing Wade Seccombe in 2024. Under his watch, Queensland reached the Sheffield Shield final in his first season, while the Heat missed out on the BBL finals in both terms.

The Netherlands squad for the CWCL2 matches will be announced shortly after July 9. They will play their first match against Nepal on July 23, before taking on Namibia on July 25. Netherlands will also take on Nepal and Namibia in the reverse fixtures on July 29 and 31 respectively.

–IANS

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