EXCLUSIVE
Follow UsAhead of what is set to be his maiden T20 World Cup for the Netherlands, fast bowler Fred Klaassen was one of the standout performers for Kent in the T20 Blast picking up 19 wickets from 14 games, striking once every 13.6 deliveries.
The T20 Blast and The Hundred gave Klaassen an opportunity to play in front of big crowds and also share the dressing room with some top-class players like Sam Billings, Joe Denly, Adam Milne among others, which could come in handy.
While the left-arm pacer admits there are nerves going into his maiden World Cup, but adds that there is no reason he cannot use that to his advantage.
“There are definitely nerves. You always want nerves going into the game. With experience you turn those nervous energy into excitement and you take that into your attitude and that makes you more switched on,” Klaassen said on Cricket.com’s show ‘Know Your Associates.’
“I think that’s what I’ve learnt in the last couple of years from playing in front of the bigger crowds and playing in bigger games. I want that pressure, I want that butterfly feeling in the stomach. You take them into the game and use them in your success as well,” he added.
Two out of three Netherlands’ matches in the T20 World Cup are going to be played in Abu Dhabi, where left-arm seamers have found a lot of success. Klaassen feels he does have the edge given that he is the lone left-arm fast bowler in the side.
“Left-arm seamers are a rare breed. They have been successful all over the world in T20 cricket. If I can swing the ball upfront I’ll be using those stats and hopefully doing well going forward. It is one of my advantages as a left-arm pacer. I’m the only one in the squad here. I look forward to taking the new ball if selected,” Klaasen, who made his international debut in 2018 said.
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While Klaasen has all the tricks in the book but feels that it is important to keep improving every year, which is what he has been doing over the last few years.
“One thing I’m proud of is that I’ve improved quite a lot every year. I want to keep improving – if I can add more arsenal to my armoury, that would be terrific as well, maybe another slower ball I might be developing,” said Klaasen, who has 20 wickets from 21 T20Is.
“But for me, the most important thing is the mindset – backing myself and taking confidence into games, showing the world what I’ve got and not shying away, which I have improved a lot on and I look forward to taking that more on,” he further emphasised.
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There is little doubt the Klaasen’s stint at Kent has helped him hone his skills further and become a better bowler. The Dutch pacer says it has been a learning experience just watching how they go about things not just on the field, but off it as well.
“It’s an amazing experience, I spend a lot of time with them on the field but I also get to know them off the field. I’ve been very lucky,” Klaasen said.
“Other than the domestic players, we’ve have been lucky to have great overseas players like Adam, Milne, Mohammad Nabi. It has been unbelievable. I am getting used to it a bit more, but in that first season, I had to pinch myself coming across these players who I’ve looked up to, watched them on TV, supported growing up.”
“I feel lucky and privileged to be able to play most of the year round in England in County Cricket. I look even more forward to playing in the Dutch team because it’s not as regular. But when we do come together as the Dutch side, I like to give it everything.”
