Jacob-Jan Esmeijer

Flamingo since 2001

A lifetime of cricket

Just where can a simple cricket game lead to!? The year was 1979. Jacob-Jan Esmeijer was only seven years old, when he and a few other boys were challenged by Excelsior coach Rupert Gomes to drive a cricket ball against an oil barrel in as few attempts as possible - and from about fifty meters. Jacob-Jan: "I still remember how proud I was that I succeeded in just three strokes."

Good arm

Under the care of Rob de Leede, and with talented contemporaries such as Erik Gouka and Luuk and André van Troost by his side, "JJ" began his cricket career. In 1989 he made his debut in the first, against Bloemendaal. "At that time, I excelled mainly as a fielder, blessed with, as they say, a good arm, but I also stood my ground as a batsman and bowler." Of course, there are good memories of his long cricket career. For example, a game against Quick (Hg) in May 1990. "Both teams had coaches of name and fame. We had the Australian phenomenon Tim Zoehrer and the residents of The Hague and the hardly less famous Zimbabwean David Houghton. It didn't seem to be our day though, because after a huge collapse we stumbled, batting first, to a meager 107 all out, with 27 runs by Tim Zoehrer and 20 by me. We were halfway through it. Then Erik Dulfer dramatically said: "We'll get them! Flap (André van Troost), you take 7 and I the other 3. 'The wicket was wet that day and the balls remained low, but on the good coconut matting from Excelsior you could; with extremely bright off-cutters and fine off- spin bowling, get something done. Thus, it happened. Erik took seven (7 for 37 in 15) and André three (3 for 32 in 14.4)."

Training with the pros

In 1991 Jacob-Jan trained, through the Leo van der Kar sports fund, with Maarten Bakker and Diederick Zaaijer, for five days at Edgbaston with Warwickshire. It was a memorable episode in his cricket life. The Warwickshire first team was on a pre-season training tour to the West Indies. But the absolute star, South African speed monster Alan Donald, had stayed in England because of apartheid politics. "Coincidentally, the Dutch cricket team was also in Birmingham, only Rupert Gomes was not present on time, so there was a gap to be filled for the match between the Orange and Warwickshire's second XI, with Alan Donald. And so it happened that I was in the field with a world star, an event that I will not soon forget."

In 1993 Jacob-Jan had another chance to train in England. André van Troost invited him to Somerset. "He wasn't the least of names that I met there: Andrew Caddick, who would make his Test debut for England that year, and the unplayable Pakistani spinner Mushtaq Ahmed. During my stay in Taunton, I was allowed to play in the second XI once, which earned me a fee of thirty pounds."

Several poor years followed, partly due to the sudden death of his father, who meant a great deal to him. Fortunately, his cricket saw an upward spiral at the end of the last decade of the century. In 1999 he had such a good season that national coach Emmerson Trotman took him to Zimbabwe the following year. "It was a shame that I broke my thumb during the first training session. Yet in that period I had the impression that there was more for me to get out of my cricket. What helped, was that in 2001 I was able to camp in Cape Town for four months through the Dutch Cricket Academy led by Emmerson Trotman together with a group of other cricketers. We lived at the base of Newlands’ floodlights, it just couldn't have been better.”

Win with a three

Every cricket career has an absolute highlight and for Jacob-Jan it took place in 2001 during the battle for the ICC Trophy in Canada. In the final against Namibia, he hit the three that was good for victory on the last ball. His 58 not out also earned him the honourary title of man of the match. "The story of the 50th and last over was disgustingly exciting. I hit the fifth ball in the direction of the boundary, where a fielder could not directly control it. Asim Khan and I were able to complete a second run, leaving three more before the final ball. He ended up at the fielder's feet on fine leg via an inside edge of mine, who let the ball slip in an incredible way. So instead of a single it became a three."

In 2006 Jacob-Jan led a Flamingo tour to England. Together with Henk-Jan and Geert-Maarten Mol and Bart Kuipéri, he played, among others, on the field of the venerable Charterhouse School. The other picturesque fields are also engraved in his memory.

After his active career, cricket never left his life. As the author of various cricket books and, since 2020, a member of the league board in charge of marketing and communication, he always shows great commitment to his beloved sport. "Every spring when the sun gives some warmth, it starts to itch. Then I know that I will not be able to resist the call of willow and leather. It will always be that way."