Bas de Leede

Flamingo since 2017

The Apple…

When top cricket player Tim de Leede is your father and coach, it is almost impossible not to have your cricket talents boosted! The fact that Bas, as a ten-year-old, was chosen for the Dutch Lions under 12 team comes as no surprise. During that time, he loved everything related to cricket. Batting, bowling, fielding, he didn't care, so long as the young all-rounder could be on the VCC field.

In the first at fourteen

At the age of thirteen, Bas went with the under 15’s to the European Championship in England, where he marvelled at the beautiful accommodation in prestigious Rugby School, which is more than four centuries old. During the tournament he came up against the, always difficult, Scotland on five and scored a nice 60 not out, giving his team another presentable and defendable total. The fact that it resulted in a loss does not detract from the obvious calibre of his innings.

A few years later, the Dutch first team looms, with the chance to play against Canterbury and Kent's second XI. In the meantime, at a very young age - only fourteen - he made his appearance in the first of VCC. Bas: "My assignment was simple. Since wickets were often being lost at a rapid pace that season, it was my job to facet as many balls as possible. And I did. It was a period in which things went up and down with VCC. Start in the first class, first class and then the main class. Until we ended up at the level where we belong, namely, the top class! "

Organising the Flamingo Juniors Tournament

Everything about Bas started early, just like his Flamingo’s connection. At only seventeen he was invited to join the A tour to England as a "junior", an unforgettable experience. A year later he was asked to get involved in the organization of the Flamingo Junior Tournament. "For a long time that event was a highlight on the cricket calendar, but through the years it had become a bit uncool. Time for new impetus. Fortunately, ten teams have taken part again in the past two years, which resulted in four semi-finalists for the final day after a group phase (Amsterdam, Utrecht, The Hague, Rotterdam). Two years ago, the curious fact hit me; that I was both organiser and winner. A year later, Red and White won. I cannot complain about the lack of response now. The aim is to have sixteen teams competing for the honour in the not-too-distant future. The Flamingo Junior Tournament should be another highlight of the season. "

Gary Kirsten Cricket Academy

The Flamingos are an important part of Bas's cricket life in other aspects. In winter 2017-2018, he was invited to camp in Cape Town for three months together with Musa Nadeem and Asad Zulfiqar to learn the finer tricks of the trade at Gary Kirsten Cricket under the guidance of coaches Ryan Cook, Ryan van Niekerk and Adi Bicknell. Academy. "I learned a lot there from them, especially as a batsman. The training sessions were not bad at all. From Monday to Friday, we were working from nine to four. I saw a lot of balls coming towards me. Fielding and fitness were also important. Everything was approached almost scientifically. Of course, we also saw a lot of competitions in our South African period, especially at the regional level."

Almost immediately after his stay in Cape Town, Bas received an invitation to join the Dutch national team for the World Cup qualifications in Zimbabwe. In the end he participated twice. His expectations were high, and things were evolving against Nepal (36). In 2019 he played for the Netherlands again, at home against Zimbabwe, followed by two more games against Ireland and Scotland at the end of the summer. "If I want to get a permanent place, I have to become a little more stable. There is a lot of competition and of course everyone is seizing their chances."

In the future, Bas, in the footsteps of Roland Lefebvre, Paul-Jan Bakker and André van Troost, would really like to become a professional cricketer in England, and after his match-winning performance against Nepal in the three-nation tournament in April 2021, a place in Orange seems more of a certainty. He has also been able to ‘smell the English system’ for two years as a member of the MCC Young Cricketers. "We trained at Lords and played our matches in High Wycombe. I learned a lot there too."

The importance of the MCC Young Cricketers as a stepping-stone is evident as many previous alumni, including notorious bad boys Ian Botham and Phil Tufnell, came a long way. Bas does not mind following in their footsteps, everything neatly of course.