Dick Bekedam

Flamingo since 1978

A duck against Freddie Trueman

After his education at the National Higher School for Tropical Agriculture in Deventer, Dick's father ended up "in tobacco". After the transfer of sovereignty at the end of 1949 it was not an easy time for the Dutch in the East and so it was a small miracle that the Bekedam family, of which Dick had been a part since his birth in Djember in 1952, could stay on Java until 1958. Their return to the homeland was by no means smooth. Little Dick experienced the crossing by boat to Singapore as a pleasure trip. However, he was shocked when an emergency landing had to be made enroute to New Delhi, an event he would never forget.

Rhodesia

His stay in the Netherlands turned out to be just an intermezzo. Dick: "We soon left for Rhodesia where my father picked up his old craft again. I ended up in a small boarding school, where a lot of attention was paid to sports, including cricket. Every afternoon we were on the sports field and that's how I learned the basics of the game. It was therefore only logical that not long after returning to the Netherlands in 1964, I registered as assistant professor. I was part of the class of Bart van Olphen, Johan Withagen and Bart and Steven Lubbers. I was in the same class with the latter at HBS, we only saw about three months."

Solid opener

With Dries Kost as the main driver and Louk Hartong as captain, UD started a steady advance. In 1967 Dick moved into the first. "I still remember how I was taken in tow by Georg Hartong in one of my first seasons. In a match that is still clear to me, we dragged the victory out of the fire together. How proud I was. During those years I developed into a solid opener and contributed to the promotions that would eventually take us to the highest level. Eduard Abendanon, who excelled as a bowler, had a not insignificant share in this, as well as the enormous talent of Steven Lubbers and his brother Bart.”

138 not out

Dick fondly thinks back to the scorching summer of 1976. He scored more than 1000 runs and grew above himself in the match against VOC. "It was June 27 and Anton Bakker was looking forward to it. He showed the UD bowlers all over the field and already had 201 runs to his name (21x4, 9x6, a record at the time) when a declaration followed (VOC 291 for 3). UD seemed doomed, but I turned out to have my day and got up to 138 when time was running out. Players who had to tour with the Dutch team to Ireland - I was there for the first time - were still expected at Schiphol that evening, I believe at eight o'clock. So it happened that, although there was still one or two left, a kind of gentleman's agreement was decided, upon a draw (UD 258 for 5.)”

Freddie Trueman

“The next day was considerably less glorious for me. During a stopover in York, we played a strong Yorkshire XI, with the famous Freddie Trueman, then, at 45 in his absolute last days, but according to the Who's Who of Cricketers;' a fast bowler whose belligerence made him the most feared by batsmen in England in the 1950s and early 1960s. He was not an easy man because his reputation for being difficult to handle and outspoken caused him to miss a number of Tests. His first ball to me, a vicious leg cutter, took the top of my off stump. A duck for me, but it was a duck from Freddie Trueman!"

All in all, Dick played for the Netherlands eleven times between 1976 and 1982. His best performance came in a three-day against Scotland in which he scored 85 runs. He has good memories of his captains; Gerrit van Laer, Chris van Schouwenburg and Anton Bakker, although Chris was a competitor for the opener’s position. "You don't pass a captain that easily, maybe that's why I often sat on the bench."

Cricket life at Kon. UD

During his cricket career, Dick Kon remained UD faithful. His numbers are impressive. In 17 seasons, he scored 5,205 runs and held 126 catches. As a bowler he was a quantité négligeable, judging by the three wickets he took for 145 runs. All in all, a lot to look back on with pleasure. Dick did the same on his tours with the Uncles, a colourful UD company, to Hollingbourne in Kent. They camped there, first on the cricket field and later on the football fields. Women and children also came which made it a big party. 

One match was played against a strong team that was nevertheless sidelined for 103. This total was easily passed by the opening duo Dick Bekedam and Kees Ruskamp (109 for 0). It almost goes without saying that the last ball went for six.

Cunning people from the west

From 1978 Dick Flamingo. "In the East, we weren't those Flamingo types. I thought it was more of a thing for cunning people from the west, but hey, I joined anyway. I went on a memorable tour under captain Henny Wijkhuizen. We played, also at the beautiful amphitheater in Arundel. I don't remember whether it was there or in some other picturesque field that I did one of my most striking acts. Henny was bowling and he'd posted me in short leg, not a harmless position, as every cricketer knows. But he had seen that my reflexes were optimal that day, because by reacting lightning fast I held no fewer than three catches there, which greatly pleased him and me."

Old love does not rust

In recent years, Dick has almost always been on golf tours. "Golf is my big hobby now. I hope to be able to do it for a long time, of course also in Flamingo company. But of course, I will never forget cricket. I still love to watch, I recently saw the fantastic draw that India pulled out of the fire on the fifth day of the third test against Australia (January 11, 2021). So old love does not rust!"