The England and Wales Cricket Board has announced that The Netherlands will join Scotland and an England and Wales Recreational Game XI in taking part in next year’s Pro40 competition.

In a parallel development, Cricket Ireland has confirmed that it has, owing to its crowded international scehdule, declined the ECB’s invitation to participate.

The KNCB’s interim CEO, Jan Zwart, said on Monday that the Board had decided last week to enter the new competition.

‘We are greatly looking forward to profiling Dutch cricket in this challenging competition,’ he said, ‘and we welcome the opportunity it gives to renew our bond with English cricket.’

With twelve matches in the group phase, six in England and six in The Netherlands, the Pro40 will be challenging in more than merely a playing sense. But taking on six English counties twice will provide an opportunity for high-level cricket which was too good to miss, and the Bond will be widely congratulated on deciding to meet those challenges.

Not the least of the issues will be the financial one: the total cost of the operation is likely to be between €100k. and €150k., and it was largely on this basis, apparently, that the Irish decided not to take part.

On the other hand, Dutch participation in such a high-profile competition, with full media coverage and top-quality opposition, should greatly enhance the KNCB’s attractiveness to potential sponsors, and the Bond will doubtless now be redoubling its efforts to find a new major sponsor.

Another potential concern is player availability, something which has already caused problems with the much less demanding schedule of Intercontinental Cup matches and ODIs. With the introduction of contracts so far proceeding at a pace of which the average snail would be ashamed, it is to be hoped that this matter will now be speedily resolved, and that The Netherlands will be able to field the strongest possible side on a regular basis.

And there is the intriguing prospect of the Dutch fielding an overseas player, boosting the team on the field and helping to raise its profile off it. To be honest, though, Ireland and Scotland’s experiences with overseas players in the Friends Provident Trophy have not always been happy ones, and care would need to be taken in ensuring that whoever was brought in really made a difference.

Then, of course, there’s the question of fixtures. The ECB has drawn up a list of 16 dates, ten in April-May and six in August-September, from which the participants will choose twelve in arranging their schedule.

Three factors make this an easier task for the KNCB than it might otherwise have been. One is that the first three dates are in April, before the start of the Dutch domestic season; another the inclusion of a couple of British bank holiday Mondays. The third is the reduction of the top Dutch divisions to eight teams, which has freed up four Sundays in the course of the season.

Taking these factors into consideration, there’s no reason why the Pro40 can’t be combined with international fixtures, the Topklasse and Hoofdklasse, and even the projected regional two-day competition, with only minimal impact on the domestic competition.

Above everything else, though, participation in the Pro40 provides an unparalleled opportunity for promoting the game in The Netherlands.

The victory over England at Lord’s on 5 June created a very short-term spike in the Dutch media’s coverage of the sport, but that effect quickly disappeared, and not enough was done to build on it. The visit by Afghanistan had a certain impact, but there’s been little sense of a thought-through media strategy to promote the game and expand its audience.

With not only the six home Pro40 matches but also the World Cricket League Division 1 tournament and a visit by Scotland due to take place in 2010, the KNCB has the chance - and the responsibility – to develop such a strategy, and to ensure that cricket is put onto the Dutch map as it has never been before.