Midway through our conversation on an overcast, slightly windy afternoon, Logan van Beek quotes Maya Angelou: This is a wonderful day. I have never seen this one before.
That, the Netherlands all-rounder says, is going to be his motto for the cricket World Cup.
“Whether we get badly beaten, I get badly hit bowling-wise, or I get out for a duck, the next day is a wonderful day,” van Beek tells The Hindu, shortly after the training session at the St. Xavier’s College Ground.
He also speaks about his conversation the other night he had with the 10-year-old Logan, who grew up in Christchurch dreaming of playing the cricket World Cup for New Zealand. Little Logan didn’t imagine that he would instead be playing the World Cup for the Netherlands.
Neither could he have imagined that he would play a significant role in booking the Netherlands’ ticket for the World Cup with a stunning performance in the Super Over, both with bat and ball, in the qualifying tournament match at Harare. After slamming Jason Holder’s every ball for a boundary – three fours, three sixes in the score of 30 – he took two for eight.
“The cricketing gods were on my side,” says van Beek. “They gave me the privilege of having a moment like that. But I believe it’s just the start of what I’m capable of.”
The following day, he sent a message to Holder, saying that he felt for him. “Jason is actually one of my good friends that we’ve played together for a long time,” says van Beek.
“We were both at the U-19 World Cup (in which I played for New Zealand) in 2010 and he came around to my house and met my family. He texted me back: I’m so happy that it was you who did that to me.”
It was not just the Under-19 cricket van Beek has played for New Zealand. He was part of the New Zealand team for the Under-19 basketball World championship.
Last year, he had toured India with the New Zealand-A side, and one recalls watching him in the second ‘Test’ at Hubballi produce an outside edge from opener Abhimanyu Easwaran with a ball that swung away a long away. He is excited about the World Cup.
“When I represent Holland, I’m proud to represent that side of my family,” he says. I’m proud to wear the orange. As for New Zealand, it’s the country I grew up and spent most of my life in.”
