The coolest chance: Stars match the house of Cricket

Because most club cricketers prepare the country up and down to get their season going in two weeks, most will be grateful to play back on grass under the sun after a long winter indoor.

For VOC Rotterdams Arnav Jain, the location for his season opener De Lords Cricket Ground is generally considered the house of Cricket.

It is an honor and a pinnacle of the sport, he says with a sparkle in his eyes. Jain speaks with Dutch news in London while playing a training session on the eve of the captain of an ICC European Under-23 XI under 23 against the Marylebone Cricket Club in a one-off 50-over match at Lords.

Dutch participation
The 23-year-old all-rounder is the only Dutchman in one side with emerging players from five other European non-Tests countries: Scotland, Jersey, Guernsey, Italy and Denmark.

The MCC sends coaching teams to many countries in Europe every year, so we would act as a bit of a bridge we have in Europe, Andy Wright, the development manager for ICC Europe, explains to the season opener to a T20 game and a 50-over armor representing in the future.

The conversation then started from our side, what can we do about getting a fixture for a high -quality European development XI to get here? She [the MCC] Also understand their responsibility to grow the game in Europe, as well as only in England and Wales. My job is to ensure that they realize that Europe needs as much cricket support as someone else. So that's really where it came from.

Lords has a special place in the Dutch cricket survey, where it is the scene of one of the greatest disturbances in sport. With a group of mainly amateur players, the Netherlands turned England in a final ball thriller on the T20 World Cups Curtain Raiser 2009. Since then they have not played an international game at the location.

A few months shy for his eighth birthday then, Jain had not picked up the sport yet and she discovered a few years later about the victory. A cricket player of the first generation born from Indian parents, with his 17-year-old brother Aaditt in his footsteps, he quickly went through the age group ranks and has been around the Dutch national setup since 2018 that culminated in a first call-up for Pakistans Tour three years ago.

Although he heated the bank, he managed to go up the park as a replacement fellow player in the second ODI.

It would have been quite special to make my debut on my home base. All my friends and family were there, but no, I look back on it with good memories, says Jain.

Student life
For the most part of his gaming career, including winning two T20 trophies with VOC, he has succeeded in juggling with a full-time bachelor's degree in economics and later a master in finance and investments.

I have always had my books on tour. Sometimes it is difficult, you don't go for a beer after training or after the game with your teammates, and you have to stay at home and see you late. But luckily I was able to follow most of my education online.

If that wasn't enough, he is also a chef who runs a pop-up restaurant in Amsterdam. A self-confidence homemade student, which started as a happy Covid accident, has now become another part-time performance on the sidelines.

I wanted to start my own restaurant, but I didn't have the money, so I thought I would do a pop -up restaurant. The first time I let 30 people come and then I expanded it to nine courses for 40 people with a fixed menu.

I was the only one in the kitchen, he says, in a smile. I love the bustling nature and the stress. I whose whose is almost busy. I now go a bit away from cricket and to the world of investment banking and that is also high pressure, very competitive. I just love that stuff.

Match Results
A wicket of only his fourth ball the next day was also proof of that, a successful LBW shout. He later added another to his count thanks to a dive catch at mid-wicket to end with figures of 2-33 in eight overs.

He chased 268, came in on 115-3 and played happy to play the second violin for sweaters Charlie Brennan, who scored a remarkable unbeaten century, in a crucial position of 104 run. By the time Jain was sent back for a well -made 43 of 71 deliveries, even a six dumping in the large gallery, he had ensured that the game was in front of his side at a moving distance. Brennan and Italys Syed Naqvi compulsory properly with the finishing touches.

Very proud of the group to come out and put European associated cricket on the map, says Jain radiantly after the game. They have the skill, they have the talent. They need a little discipline and guidance to push them in the right direction to the right things at the right time. And I have a taste of that in the Dutch setup, so I was happy that I could take it with me and in that sense people buy there
fast.

Subsequent steps
Come on Monday, he will exchange his cricket kit for a suit, as his career in High Finance starts as an intern at Santander in Amsterdam.

I am open to everything, but with that job it is quite difficult to juggle full -time cricket. So now Cricket takes a bit of a rear seat, and hopefully I make a career there.

I would actually like [my career] to be in cricket because I would like to play here [at Lords] More often, or travel around the world, and I also did a bit of it. I loved every minute. Unfortunately I did not get the results or the breakthrough moments I wanted. That does not mean that I have closed cricket options in the future, but this victory is just a nice high to end this chapter.

Short scores: MCC XI 267-8 (Alfie Cooper 70, Evan Williams 54, Jain 2-33, Zainullah Ihsan 2-37) Lost from ICC European XI 271-5 in 48.2 Overs (C Brennan 112*, Jain 43, Tom Harper 2-35)