Max O'Dowd made a gutsy half century as the Netherlands recorded a deserved five-wicket win over Zimbabwe, who are all but eliminated from the T20 World Cup.

Paul van Meekeren set the tone with the ball, taking 3-29 as Zimbabwe were knocked over for just 117 in a poor batting display at the Adelaide Oval.

Sikandar Raza made a brisk 40 off 24 and Sean Williams 28 off 23 to ensure there was not total humiliation but no other Zimbabwe batsman made double figures.

Dutch opener O'Dowd scrapped his way to 52, making eight fours and one six, to set the chase up nicely.

Tom Cooper also played a part with 32 off 29. Richard Ngarava (2-23) accounted for Colin Ackerman (1) and Scott Edwards (5), while Blessing Muzarabani ended O'Dowd's knock but the Netherlands had enough to get over the line.

Zimbabwe are fourth in Group 2 with just one more Super 12 game to play, while the Dutch remain rock bottom but at least get in the win column.

Mohammad Rizwan crafted a fluent 49 as Pakistan eased to their first victory and kept their hopes alive at the T20 World Cup after a six-wicket triumph over the Netherlands.

Babar Azam's side suffered final-over heartbreak against both India and Zimbabwe in Australia, though had little trouble at Optus Stadium after restricting the Netherlands to just 91-9 on Sunday.

Shadab Khan tore through the Dutch batting line-up, with the leg-spinner taking 3-22. Colin Ackermann's 27 from as many balls represented the only Netherlands batter to pass 20 runs.

Despite Babar being run out by Roelof van der Merwe for just four, Rizwan and Fakhar Zaman steadied the ship before the latter fell to Brandon Glover for 20, leaving Pakistan 53-2 from 7.1 overs.

Rizwan survived a review on 39, a decision overturned after Logan van Beek failed to get his hands under a chance from Fred Klaassen's bowling, though the wicket-keeper batter was dismissed soon after.

Paul van Meekeren (1-19) had Rizwan caught behind in the 13th over and Shan Masood (12) followed to Glover (2-22), though Iftikhar Ahmed (six not out) and Shadab (four not out) saw Pakistan over the line with 37 balls to spare.

Spin torments Netherlands

Shadab and Mohammad Wasim (2-15) did the damage as the Netherlands failed to deal with Pakistan's spin bowling.

Mohammad Nawaz went wicketless from his two overs but also conceded just 11 runs as Pakistan limited the Netherlands to a score that ensured no final-over chaos was in store for Babar's side.

Pakistan reliant on other results

Pakistan will have been delighted to see Fakhar, returning from a seven-week absence after a knee injury, bat fluently in the middle order as they picked up victory in a must-win game.

Yet even if Babar's side defeat South Africa and Bangladesh in their remaining Group 2 games, they will need other results to go their way to make the top two, starting with India beating the Proteas later on Sunday.

Virat Kohli made another half-century as India took another step towards the T20 World Cup semi-finals with a 56-run victory over Netherlands at the SCG.

Kohli's magnificent unbeaten 82 gave India a dramatic win over Pakistan on Sunday and he followed that up with 62 from 44 balls as India posted 179-2 in Sydney on Thursday.

Captain Rohit Sharma struck 53 from 39 deliveries after being dropped by Tim Pringle on 13 and Suryakumar Yadav (51 not out off 25) also made a half-century to leave the Dutch facing a substantial run chase.

Netherlands never looked like pulling off a huge upset, falling short on 123-9 as they suffered defeat in as many Super 12 matches.

Bhuvneshwar Kumar (2-9) took the wicket of Vikramjit Singh and did not conceded a run in his first two overs, while Axar Patel (2-18), Ravichandran Ashwin (2-21) and Arshdeep Singh (2-37) also impressed with the ball.

Victory for India moved them a point ahead of South Africa, who hammered Bangladesh by 104 runs earlier in the day, at the top of Group 2.

Kohli goes back-to-back, Suryakumar shows his class

A Kohli masterclass gave India a sensational victory over Pakistan at the MCG and the former captain carried on where he left off in another classy knock.

He reached his half-century in 37 balls, hitting two sixes and finding the rope three times in another high-quality innings.

Suryakumar, number three in the T20I batting rankings, hit seven fours and reached his half-century by launching the final ball of the innings from Logan van Beek for six.

The brilliance of Bhuvneshwar 

India also demonstrated the potency of their bowling attack and it was Bhuvneshwar who set the tone.

He bowled back-to-back maidens and cleaned up before returning to get rid of captain Scott Edwards in his second spell.

Taskin Ahmed took four wickets as Bangladesh beat Netherlands by nine runs in their first game of the T20 World Cup at Bellerive Oval.

Afif Hossain top scored with 38 as the Tigers were restricted to 144-8 in their opening Group 2 game in Hobart on Monday.

Paul van Meekeren (2-21) and Bas de Leede (2-29) claimed two wickets apiece to keep Bangladesh down to a total that the Dutch would have felt they could chase down.

Paceman ensured it was advantage Bangladesh by taking two wickets with the first two deliveries of the run chase, dismissing Vikramjit Singh and De Leede.

Netherlands were deep in the mire at 15-4 after Max O'Dowd and Tom Cooper were run out, but a half-century from Colin Ackermann gave them hope.

Ackermann struck 62 off 48 balls, but he lacked support and the Dutch were all out for 135.

Taskin too hot to handle

It was an impressive spell with the ball from Taskin, who took four wickets in a T20I for the first time in his career.

His figures of 4-25 earned him the player of the match award, removing Ackermann and Shariz Ahmad after his brilliant first over. 

Ackermann shows resistance 

It proved to be in vain, but Ackermann impressed with the bat after coming in at number four.

He scored two of Netherlands' four sixes, while also hitting six fours as to prevent his side from being embarrassed. 

Sri Lanka beat the Netherlands by 16 runs to reach the T20 World Cup Super 12 stage and the Dutch also qualified after the United Arab Emirates broke Namibia's hearts.

Asia Cup champions Sri Lanka suffered a shock defeat to Namibia in their first game of the tournament, but avoided an early exit by responding with victories over the UAE and Netherlands.

A brilliant knock of 79 from 44 balls by man of the match Kusal Mendis enabled Sri Lanka to post 162-6 at Kardinia Park on Thursday, Charith Asalanka also chipping in with 31.

The Netherlands fell short on 146-9 in reply, spinners Wanindu Hasaranga (3-28) and Maheesh Theekshana (2-32) stepping up when Sri Lanka needed them, with opener Max O'Dowd's unbeaten 71 in vain.

That left the Dutch's fate out of their hands, but UAE came to their rescue by dramatically securing their first T20 World Cup win to knock Namibia out in Geelong.

Muhammad Waseem top scored with 50 and captain Chundangapoyil Rizwan made 43 not out in UAE's 148-3. A victory would have seen Namibia advance with Sri Lanka, but they were beaten by seven runs after being restricted to 141-8.

David Wiese's half-century in a stand of 70 with Ruben Trumpelmann looked to have put Namibia on course to qualify, but he was out 55 in an excellent final over from Waseem

Group A winners Sri Lanka face the runners-up in Group B in their Super 12 opener at Bellerive Oval on Sunday, while the Netherlands face Bangladesh at the same venue in Hobart a day later.

Karthik Meiyappan's historic hat-trick was in vain as Sri Lanka thrashed the United Arab Emirates by 79 runs after Netherlands moved to the brink of the T20 World Cup Super 12s.

Sri Lanka suffered a shock defeat to Namibia in the first game of the tournament on Sunday, but responded with an emphatic win over UAE at Kardinia Park.

Pathum Nissanka top scored with 74 from 60 balls as the Asia Cup champions posted 152-8, Meiyappan (3-19) becoming the first UAE player to take a T20I hat-trick.

Sri Lanka had been 117-2 in the 15th over, but a late collapse did not prove to be costly as UAE were skittled out for only 73 in 17.1 overs.

Wanindu Hasaranga claimed brilliant figures of 3-8 from four overs, while Dushmantha Chameera (3-15) and Maheesh Theekshana (2-15) also sparkled under the lights to leave Sri Lanka in third place in Group A, level on points with Namibia with an inferior net run-rate.

The Netherlands are two points clear at the top of the group after bringing Namibia back down to earth with a five-wicket victory.

Namibia posted 121-6 and the Dutch got home with three balls to spare, Bas de Leede named man of the match after making an unbeaten 30 and taking two wickets.

England have the opportunity to gain a measure of revenge on Italy for their Euro 2020 final defeat after the two nations were drawn together in Euro 2024 qualifying.

Italy beat England 3-2 on penalties after a 1-1 draw at Wembley in London on July 11, 2021 to win their first European Championship title since 1968.

Gareth Southgate's Three Lions had opened the scoring through Luke Shaw, but the Azzurri levelled via Leonardo Bonucci.

And spot-kick misses by Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho and Bukayo Saka proved costly for England, who had hoped to win a first major title in 55 years.

The two will tussle again – twice – on the road to Germany 2024 after being drawn together in qualifying Group C in Sunday's ceremony, which was held in Frankfurt.

Nevertheless, both teams will still expect to reach the finals given the top two in each group progress to the tournament - joining them will be Ukraine, North Macedonia and Malta.

It was North Macedonia who knocked Italy out of the World Cup qualifying play-offs earlier this year.

Group B is another standout after the Netherlands were drawn alongside reigning world champions France in a pool that also contains Republic of Ireland, Greece and Gibraltar.

Spain will be confident of plotting a way through Group A, which also contains Scotland, Norway, Georgia and Cyprus, though Belgium may face a slightly sterner examination after being grouped with Austria, Sweden, Azerbaijan and Estonia.

Qualifying is set to begin in March 2023 and conclude eight months later, with the winners and runners-up of each group going straight through to the tournament.

The remaining three teams will be decided in March 2024 via a play-off section, which will be made up of 12 group winners from the 2022-23 Nations League.

If a Nations League section winner has already qualified for Euro 2024, their play-off place will pass to the next best-ranked country from the same league.

Draw in full:

Group A: Spain, Scotland, Norway, Georgia, Cyprus
Group B: Netherlands, France, Republic of Ireland, Greece, Gibraltar
Group C: Italy, England, Ukraine, North Macedonia, Malta
Group D: Croatia, Wales, Armenia, Turkey, Latvia
Group E: Poland, Czech Republic, Albania, Faroe Islands, Moldova
Group F: Belgium, Austria, Sweden, Azerbaijan, Estonia
Group G: Hungary, Serbia, Montenegro, Bulgaria, Lithuania
Group H: Denmark, Finland, Slovenia, Kazakhstan, Northern Ireland, San Marino
Group I: Switzerland, Israel, Romania, Kosovo, Belarus, Andorra
Group J: Portugal, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Iceland, Luxembourg, Slovakia, Liechtenstein

South Africa will host England in a rearranged one-day international series early next year.

The two sides were due to contest the three-match series in 2020, but England flew home following the Twenty20 International matches due to concerns about COVID-19.

Temba Bavuma's side will instead face the world champions at the Mangaung Oval in Bloemfontein on January 27 and January 29, with the series finishing at the Kimberley Oval on February 1.

The Proteas will also take on West Indies in two Tests, the first starting SuperSport Park on February 28 and the second getting under way at The Wanderers on March 8.

South Africa then face three ODIs and as many T20Is against the Windies before two matches versus the Netherlands in the 50-over format.

Cricket South Africa (CSA) chief executive Pholetsi Moseki said: "South Africa is fast becoming the home-soul for international cricket. We are a proud cricketing nation, with abundance of talent, grit, and temperament for the game.

"CSA is thrilled to be hosting England, West Indies and the Netherlands, all worthy opponents, in what is billed to be an exciting summer of international cricket.

"This is principally good news to our fans who have been starved of the blend of cricket on offer at stadiums since 2020 pandemic. These bumper fixtures confirm that cricket in South Africa is indeed open for business.

"As we look forward to hosting these cricketing powerhouses, we invite our fans to swell the stadiums in numbers to support the Proteas as they lock horns with the best in the world."

Barcelona pair Frenkie de Jong and Memphis Depay are facing a spell on the sidelines after returning from international duty with the Netherlands carrying injuries.

De Jong left the field at half-time during last week's Nations League win over Poland, while Depay hobbled off later in the same game.

Neither player featured in Sunday's win against Belgium after being given permission to return to club side Barcelona early.

Barca confirmed on their official website on Monday that both players remain injured and are not being considered for selection against Real Mallorca next weekend.

Reports from Spain suggest De Jong could return within a week, but Depay is facing closer to a month out of action with an injury to his left thigh.

The news comes on the same day that Barca announced Ronald Araujo is to undergo thigh surgery on Wednesday, ruling the defender out for the remainder of the year.

Fellow centre-back Jules Kounde also suffered an injury on international duty with France and is expected to miss a month.

Louis van Gaal praised the Netherlands' discipline in their 1-0 Nations League victory over Belgium on Sunday despite describing his team as having played "very badly". 

Victory over Poland on Thursday meant the Oranje only needed to avoid a heavy defeat to their neighbours at the Johan Cruijff ArenA in Amsterdam to seal top spot in Group A4 and progress to the Nations League Finals next year.

A result of that nature never looked like materialising, with Virgil van Dijk securing three points for the hosts in the 73rd minute – the centre-back's sixth goal for his country, four of those being headers from a corner.

The result extended Oranje's unbeaten run to 15 games (11 wins, four draws) since Van Gaal was reappointed for the third time in August last year, while it also saw Van Gaal move level with Dick Advocaat as the manager with the most wins in charge of the Netherlands (37). 

"We lost the ball so much and in simple situations," he told NOS. "Just like against Poland, only now even more. 

"That also had to do with Belgium, who put more pressure on the ball, especially in the second half. We certainly didn't play our best game.

"Belgium are very strong in terms of quality. They have a lot of individual quality. [Kevin] De Bruyne and [Eden] Hazard; those are top players. The Belgians did very well from the back. They were the better team today.

"I told the players that we played very badly, but we didn't give away many chances. 

"We also had the greatest opportunities, especially at the end. I think [Steven] Bergwijn and [Davy] Klaassen should have scored.

"This is a disciplined victory and that's nice. Although we were second best for 90 minutes, we still continued playing our game and were disciplined."

Marten de Roon replaced the injured Frenkie de Jong in midfield and Van Gaal was pleased with how the Atalanta man contained De Bruyne.

"I thought [De Roon] was one of the better players," he added. "He gave few balls to the opposition and defensively picked up De Bruyne, who walked a little further away from our pit bulls. He did that very well."

One of those "pit bulls", substitute Tyrell Malacia, also received praise from Van Gaal, who said the Manchester United man also did well in shackling De Bruyne.

"I put him on the left of the central defence because De Bruyne played a lot on that side," Van Gaal explained. "It's better to have a pit bull like that instead of someone like [Daley] Blind who tries to solve it tactically. 

"I had already discussed this with him the day before yesterday. The defensive work he did very well."

The Netherlands booked their place in the Nations League Finals as Virgil van Dijk's second-half header sealed a 1-0 win over Belgium on Sunday.

Victory over Poland on Thursday meant the Oranje only needed to avoid a heavy defeat to their neighbours at the Johan Cruijff Arena in Amsterdam to seal top spot in Group A4.

Belgium never looked like they had the firepower to pull off such a result, with Liverpool defender Van Dijk securing three points for the hosts by scoring in the 73rd minute.

The result meant the Netherlands topped their group with 16 points, with Roberto Martinez's Red Devils six points behind in second.

Belgium looked bright in the early stages, with Eden Hazard blazing over from a promising position and Michy Batshuayi firing at Remko Pasveer after being played in by Kevin De Bruyne.

At the other end, Denzel Dumfries cracked wide from 12 yards after fine work down the left from Vincent Janssen, which was the closest the hosts came in a first half that saw them fail to have an attempt on target.

Dumfries again went close at the start of the second period, while Belgium's Amadou Onana was denied by a smart stop from Pasveer shortly after the hour mark. 

Steven Bergwijn powered a shot straight at Thibaut Courtois as the Netherlands cranked up the pressure, before Van Dijk handed the hosts victory with a close-range header from Cody Gakpo's corner.

Courtois did well to deny Davy Klaassen and Bergwijn in the closing stages, while Belgium substitute Dodi Lukebakio struck the post with a sensational overhead kick with almost the last kick of the game.

Netherlands boss Louis van Gaal is doubtful that Memphis Depay and Steven Berghuis will be fit enough for Sunday's Nations League Group A4 decider against Belgium.

The Oranje cemented their position as group leaders on Thursday with a 2-0 win over Poland thanks to goals in each half from Cody Gakpo and Steven Bergwijn.

That result means they only need to avoid defeat to Roberto Martinez's side to progress to the Finals next June.

Berghuis replaced the injured Teun Koopmeiners inside the opening five minutes at the PGE Narodowy in Warsaw, but the forward was later withdrawn for Kenneth Taylor, while Depay limped off in the 52nd minute to be replaced by Vincent Janssen.

Van Gaal had good news on Koopmeiners' condition, but the Netherlands boss was not optimistic about Depay and Begrhuis' chances of featuring against the Red Devils.

"I understand that Teun was already feeling a bit better, and I replaced Frenkie [de Jong] as a precaution. He had some tension on the muscles, but he expects to play, and he knows his own body," Van Gaal told NOS. 

"I don't think Memphis will play on Sunday and neither will Berghuis. It's a back injury and that usually lasts longer than a few days."

Gakpo, who was linked with a move to the Premier League during the transfer window, has started the season in fine form for PSV, scoring eight goals in seven Eredivisie games.

The 23-year-old continued his momentum on the international stage as well, stroking home his third goal for his country early on.

He played in a more central role than he is accustomed to at club level, and Van Gaal believes that is where his future might lay.

"I thought that Gakpo performed his duties well both in possession and out of possession," the head coach added.

"It was a good lesson for him and a good development. He wanted to play from the left, but for me, he has everything to become a good 10.

"He scored again, that's also important. It was a world-class goal. I jumped off the bench too. I don't normally do that. It was a top goal."

Cody Gakpo and Steven Bergwijn were on target as the Netherlands ran out 2-0 winners over Poland in Nations League Group A4 on Thursday.

The Oranje dominated the first half at the PGE Narodowy in Warsaw and went in at the break 1-0 up thanks to Gakpo's close-range finish after 13 minutes.

Poland threatened an equaliser at the start of the second period, but Bergwijn sealed all three points on the hour mark with a composed finish.

The result means Louis van Gaal's side just need to avoid defeat in their final group game against Belgium on Sunday to progress to the Finals next June.

The Netherlands lost Teun Koopmeiners to injury inside the opening five minutes, but they went ahead when Gakpo applied the finishing touch inside the six-yard box following a flowing move that cut through Poland's backline with ease. 

Memphis Depay squandered a golden opportunity to double the visitors' advantage, blazing over from a tight angle when a simple pass to Gakpo would surely have resulted in a goal, while Steven Berghuis curled narrowly wide. 

Poland were much brighter after the interval and twice went close to an equaliser through Arkadiusz Milik and Sebastian Szymanski. 

Their hopes of getting back into the game were ended in the 60th minute, though, when Bergwijn coolly slotted past Wojciech Szczesny after being teed up by Vincent Janssen. 

What does it mean? Oranje barely break sweat

The Netherlands were excellent value for their win, with the only disappointment for Van Gaal being that they did not beat a poor Poland side by a greater margin.

Now they just need to safely navigate Sunday's mouth-watering clash against their neighbours to book their spot in next year's Finals.

Gakpo's hot streak continues

Gakpo has scored eight goals in seven Eredivisie games for PSV this season and he continued that fine form on the international stage, stroking the Netherlands ahead early on with his third goal at this level.

Shot-shy Lewandowski

Robert Lewandowski cut a frustrated figure up front for Poland. The Barcelona man has been one of Europe's most potent strikers for the past decade, yet he failed to have a single shot here as his side struggled to break down their opponents.

What's next?

Both sides wrap up their Group A4 campaigns on Sunday, with Poland visiting Wales at the same time as the Netherlands meet Belgium.

Ronald Koeman claimed an attempted move to bring Georginio Wijnaldum to Barcelona fell through after president Joan Laporta delayed a deal.

The Dutchman, who was fired by the LaLiga outfit last October after 14 months in charge at Camp Nou, struggled at times on the Barcelona bench and was replaced by Xavi.

Koeman, who will embark on a second spell as Netherlands head coach after the World Cup in Qatar, has confirmed he attempted to bring in compatriot Wijnaldum during the final transfer window of his Barcelona tenure.

However, Koeman contends that president Laporta, then recently returned to the position as Josep Maria Bartomeu's successor, stymied any move by dragging his heels.

"I tried to sign Wijnaldum for Barca, but I failed because the president wanted to play with me more than bring in a player," Koeman told Dutch newspaper AD.

"That delayed the operation, and for that reason, he opted for PSG. Otherwise, he would have played for Barcelona."

Wijnaldum left Liverpool in June 2021 to join Paris Saint-Germain, but he struggled across a dismal first season, resulting in him being loaned out to Roma for the current campaign.

A serious leg injury has since left Wijnaldum sidelined, however, making it highly unlikely he will be included in the Netherlands' squad for the Qatar 2022 World Cup.

Hertha Berlin winger Jean-Paul Boetius will undergo surgery on Friday after tests revealed the Dutchman has a testicular tumour.

The 28-year-old, capped once by the Netherlands, is a former Feyenoord and Basel player who joined Hertha in August after a four-year spell with Mainz.

His club said in a statement: "Jean-Paul Boetius has been diagnosed with a testicular tumour following the results of a urological test on Wednesday, and will be out for the foreseeable future. The 28-year-old will undergo an operation on Friday."

Fredi Bobic, Hertha's managing director of sport, backed Boetius to make a full recovery.

Bobic said: "As tough as it is to hear at first, we are full of hope that Jean-Paul will be able to recover and return to us as soon as possible.

"He will receive our full support, until he returns. The Hertha family are by his side and wish him all the best."

The news for Boetius follows Borussia Dortmund striker Sebastien Haller being found to have a testicular tumour in July, just weeks after joining from Ajax. Haller had surgery and has since undergone chemotherapy.