Long serving Netherlands bat and sometime keeper Welsey Barresi’s international career is a product of happenstance, the Johannesburg-born Barresi having been unaware of the Netherlands national team’s existence when he first arrived in the country in 2005. Coming up through the age-groups at Easterns, Barresi represented the senior side seven times in South African domestic cricket before a summer playing contract at Hilversum CC took him to the Netherlands Quickly moving to top-division club VRA, Barresi already had two Topklasse championship medals to his name when the national selectors came calling in 2009. Barresi made his senior Dutch debut in the now-defunct Intercontinental Cup against Canada in 2009 and his ODI debut at World Cricket League Division 1 a year later, before playing a starring role in the Netherlands’ first official ODI victory over a Full Member side with a match-winning 64* against Bangladesh at Titwood soon after. After playing his first few games as a specialist bat, Barresi quickly took over the gloves and would keep across formats for the Dutch for much of his career, becoming the first to pass 150 dismissals for the Netherlands in recognised cricket. Initially batting up and down the order, Barresi’s preferred role has been in the top three, be it opening - as he did for the Dutch at the 2011 World Cup - or at number three, where he struck his maiden ODI century in a losing cause against Kenya at the 2014 World Cup Qualifier. Barresi played a stalwart role in the Netherlands campaign to recover from their loss of ODI status and relegation to WCL Division 2, culminating in his second List A century in Orange four years later, striking 120 from the top of the order against Namibia to help seal the WCL Championship title and secure qualification for the ODI Super League. In the shorter format, Barresi was indispensable in the Netherlands’ qualifying campaign for the 2014 World T20, averaging 85 at the qualifier in the UAE before producing some memorable innings at the tournament itself. He struck the winning six that saw against Ireland the Dutch complete an improbable chase of 189 inside of 14 overs to win through to the second stage, and top-scored in their memorable win over England. After being dropped for the 2019 T20 Global Qualifier, however, Barresi announced his retirement in early 2021, later revealing that he was struggling with mental health issues at the time. He made his ODI return in 2022, an underwhelming showing against Pakistan, but impressed at the 2023 World Cup Qualifier with a quickfire 52 against Sri Lanka followed by an equally brutal 97 off 65 against Oman. At age 39 he is the senior statesman of the Netherlands 2023 World Cup squad, and the only survivor of the side that contested the 2011 World Cup.
