"Made me a better person" - Paul van Meekeren recalls his struggles amid 2023 World Cup success

Netherlands bowler Paul van Meekeren believes delivering Uber Eats was a stepping stone to greater things in life. The right-arm seamer underlined that these experiences made him enjoy cricket a lot more.

With the T20 World Cup in Australia postponed in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, van Meekeren had tweeted, 'Should’ve been playing cricket today. Now I’m delivering Uber Eats to get through the winter months. Funny how things change hahaha keep smiling people'.

Speaking to The Daily Mail, van Meekeren recalled his struggles and felt thankful for them, given it made him a stronger individual.

"It made me a better person. Uber Eats was actually a stepping stone and during that time, I worked part-time for a software company in Chesterfield too. In that first lockdown, I set up a Dutch Players Association too."

"All of those experiences made me a better person and actually make you enjoy your cricket more as you appreciate how lucky you are. People talk about life after cricket and those experiences will set me up for life after the game."

The 30-year-old called for more opportunities for the Netherlands, given their improved showing in the last 18 months. He also reckons the 2023 World Cup is hugely successful for them already.

"I don’t think it’s a surprise anymore for us to beat these teams. It’s always good to get cricket further on the map in the Netherlands but it shows that we should get more opportunities against the big teams. Regardless, this is a successful tournament for us and we’ve found out the top eight qualify for the Champions Trophy so that would be a strong statement. The boys are making some heavy waves I guess."

The Dutch have already defeated two full-member teams this year in South Africa and Bangladesh. However, the Netherlands' path to the semi-finals is still a steep one. They will look to beat England on Wednesday in Pune in their forthcoming encounter.

"There’s probably no better time to play England" - Paul van Meekeren

Paul van Meekeren. (Credits: Getty)

Van Meekeren, who has 10 wickets in 7 matches, feels there will be some jitters in the England dressing room, given their current form. He added:

"They’re a dangerous team but looking at their results and looking at ours, why can’t we beat them? There must be some doubts in that changing room. There’s probably no better time to play England."

England, the defending champions, are languishing at the bottom of the points table with 1 win in 7 matches.