Cooper makes ODI return after nine-year break

Almost nine years had elapsed since Tom Cooper last played a one-day international, but the former South Australia batter is eyeing a second appearance in as many days as the Netherlands look to bounce back after being thrashed by England.

Cooper wasn't initially selected in the Dutch XI for the series opener on Friday and was a late inclusion after the toss as England blasted a world record total of 4-498 in Amstelveen.

The 35-year-old right-hander made 23 from 40 balls in his first ODI appearance since July 2013 and is again in the Netherlands squad for tonight's second match of the three-game series.

Cooper, who was delisted by the Redbacks after their winless 2020-21 season, has been brought back into the international fold following the departure of several experienced Dutch players, including his 30-year-old brother Ben, who played 13 ODIs and 58 T20Is between 2013 and 2021.

Prior to Friday's first ODI, the last of Cooper's 41 international appearances for the Netherlands came in their rain-affected win against Ireland at the 2016 T20 World Cup where he opened the batting and was dismissed for a second ball duck.

He, and Ben, qualify to represent the Dutch national side by virtue of their mother who was born in Netherlands New Guinea, and he made an instant impact following his debut in 2010, scoring four fifties and a century in five of his first seven ODI innings.

He averages 47.57 from 24 international matches in the 50-over format, which is slightly higher than his List A average of 40.94 (5528 runs in 161 matches).

While Cooper has never played for the Australian national side (he was the country's leading runs scorer at the 2006 U19 World Cup), his state form had him in the mix for national selection in 2019 when he smashed a 46-ball unbeaten 81 against Victoria while Australia's white-ball skipper Aaron Finch watched on in the field.

After his exit from SA, the right-hander continued to turn out for the Brisbane Heat in the KFC BBL but could only manage 81 runs in seven matches last summer.

Netherlands Cricket High Performance Manager Roland Lefebvre said Cooper's addition to the squad to face world champions England was crucial given several of their senior players in Ryan ten Doeschate, Stephan Myburgh and his brother had stopped playing in recent years.

"The availability of Dutch players employed by English counties is also limited," Lefebvre said.

"The knowledge and experience, but also the mentoring role that Tom will have within the young Dutch national team, is of great value."

Cooper will also be available for the rest of the Netherlands' international matches this northern summer, which includes three ODIs against Pakistan and two T20Is against New Zealand, both in August.

England lead the three-match series 1-0 following their 232-run victory in the series opener.

That match was former Australia women's head coach Matthew Mott's first game in charge of England's white-ball teams following his appointment last month.

Image Id: 41D1654C58764FBBAC012BD27F810E99 Image Caption: Australian-based keeper Scott Edwards watches on as Dawid Malan goes on the attack // Getty

Also in the Dutch side is Victorian-based wicketkeeper-batter Scott Edwards, who top scored for the hosts with 72 not out from 56 balls in the first ODI.

He is also one dismissal shy of becoming the Netherlands' second-most prolific gloveman in men's one-day internationals.

The 25-year-old was awarded the player-of-the-series against Afghanistan in January, finishing with 208 runs in three ODI matches.

He also made his Victorian Second XI debut in February after several standout seasons for Richmond in Premier Cricket, which included winning the Jack Ryder Medal in 2020-21 as the best and fairest player in the competition.

Tongan-born Edwards qualifies to play for Holland through his grandma who was born there and first made his way into their national team in 2017.

He is eyeing a dream 'home' T20 World Cup later this year in Australia should the Netherlands qualify for the initial group stage.

"That'd be the dream, playing in front of a lot of family and friends," he told cricket.com.au last November.

"It's still a bit of a pinch yourself moment travelling the world playing cricket."

The Netherlands travel to Zimbabwe next month for the Qualifier B tournament from July 11-17 where the top two teams from Hong Kong, Jersey, Netherlands, PNG, Singapore, Uganda, United States and Zimbabwe qualifying for the World Cup in Australia beginning on October 16.