The Dutch selectors have announced a full-strength squad of fourteen for the Intercontinental Cup matches in against Namibia and the United Arab Emirates in late March and early April.

In a competition where travelling sides have often been severely weakened – as The Netherlands were in their game in Scotland last season – it will come as a relief to Dutch supporters that all the obvious names appear in the list.

It is also noteworthy that three of the squad have not so far appeared at all in the current competition: allrounder Ryan ten Doeschate, who was unavailable for all three matches in 2007 because of his commitments with Essex; batsman Daan van Bunge, who took a sabbatical from international cricket after the World Cup and recently declared himself once more avaialable; and off-spinner Mohammed Kashif, who spent much of last season playing club cricket in England.

Ten Doeschate’s presence will be especially welcome, given that his current batting average in the Intercontinental Cup is a massive 192.50 and that his seam bowling adds another element of sharpness to the attack.

Mudassar Bukhari, Geert Maarten Mol and Maurits Jonkman, all of whom made their debut last year, have retained their places in the side. Allrounder Bukhari, in particular, made a positive initial impression, but all three did enough to demonstrate that they could be key players, not only in the four-day competition, but also in The Netherlands’ campaign to secure qualification for the next World Cup.

Left-arm spinner Pieter Seelaar returns to the side, as does batsman Eric Szwarczynski, who missed the end of last season through a hand injury. One notable absentee is Maurits Jonkman’s twin brother Mark, who is still suffering from a persistent shoulder injury.

With the established internationals, led by Bas Zuiderent, Tom de Grooth – whose 196 against Bermuda was one of the highlights of 2007 --, Alexei Kervezee, Peter Borren, and Edgar Schiferli, also in the squad, and the leadership skills of skipper Jeroen Smits, the Dutch will have their sights firmly set on coming back to Europe with two wins in the bag.

Anything less would almost certainly end their hopes of making the final for the first time, although they have the comfort of knowing that they play their last two matches – against Ireland and Kenya – at home.

Smits acknowledges the difficulty of the trip, playing in unfamiliar conditions and taking on a Namibian side which has performed strongly in recent matches, rising to second in the table behind leaders Kenya.

‘But we’ll be starting fresh,’ he said on Wednesday, ‘and we’re all keen to play cricket. We know what we have to do, and we’re determined to achieve it.’

The tour will also be the side’s first with new national coach Peter Drinnen, who has been working regularly with the Dutch-based members of the squad.

The Netherlands will play Namibia in Windhoek on 27-30 March, and then take on the UAE in Sharjah on 3-6 April.

The full squad is:
Peter Borren (VRA Amsterdam), Mudassar Bukhari (HBS Den Haag), Daan van Bunge (Excelsior ’20 Schiedam), Ryan ten Doeschate (Essex), Tom de Grooth (HCC), Maurits Jonkman (HCC), Muhammad Kashif (Excelsior ’20), Alexei Kervezee (Worcestershire), Geert Maarten Mol (Quick Haag), Edgar Schiferli (Quick Haag), Pieter Seelaar (Hermes-DVS Schiedam), Jeroen Smits (HCC, captain-wicketkeeper), Eric Szwarczynski (VRA), and Bas Zuiderent (VOC Rotterdam).