The Netherlands head to the World Cup as rank outsiders and will have to dig deep to avoid utter humiliation after being drawn with the top seeds, Australia and South Africa, in the group stages.
The Dutch are quoted at a massive 1,000-1 to win the 16-team tournament, and their long odds are truly justified.
Just one of the 15-strong squad, the South African-born Ryan ten Doeschate, plays first class cricket, in his case for Essex in the English county championship.
Indeed, even that the Dutch made this World Cup is a miracle, after a slump that saw them sneak in after the number of qualifying places for the sport's showpiece one-day international event was increased from three to five -- the Dutch beat the United Arab Emirates to finish fifth.
Since then, Dutch selectors have had the courage to give youth its head and it now has the look of a well-balanced side, full of ability and application, but still lacking top-quality performers.
Ten Doeschate, who has Dutch ancestry and was playing for Western Province when picked up by Essex, lends a genuine solidity to the batting line-up and is a decent medium-fast right-arm bowler.
He has played 11 one-day internationals for his adopted country, an unbeaten knock of 109 not out against Bermuda this month boosting his current ODI batting average to an impressive 55.12.
In that same game, he also snagged 3-27 to boost his wicket haul to 20 ODI wickets at 22.10.
With 21 Twenty20 games also under his belt, the Port Elizabeth-born all-rounder positively oozes experience in a team that is sorely short of just that.
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