The hopes of relegated Hoofdklasse side VVV Amsterdam for a quick return to the top flight have received a blow with news that four of their leading players are moving to other clubs.

Last season’s captain Rizwan Akram, his brother Zishan and opener-wicketkeeper Kamran Shafiq are all moving to VVV’s next door neighbours ACC, while the side’s most reliable run-scorer, Mehmood Sadiq, is reported to be transferring to Hoofdklasse rivals Dosti.

ACC chairman Guido Dukker said on Wednesday that he was extremely pleased that the Akram brothers and Shafiq were returning the ACC, the club where they had started out as juniors.

‘It will give us a lot of options,’ he said, ‘and with this strengthening of the squad there will inevitably be more competition for first-team places. That can only be a good thing.’

Although he acknowledged that the departure of the quartet was disappointing, VVV secretary Rino Groenewegen declared that his club was determined to give a good account of itself in the new-look Hoofdklasse, now effectively the second division of Dutch club cricket.

‘It won’t be easy,’ he said, ‘but we’ll be looking to the other players to step up, and we expect to have some new faces in our side as well. You could say our mood remains positive.’

He also confirmed that VVV was planning to field a team in the KNCB’s junior competitions in the coming season, which would be an important development for a club which has hitherto not had a youth section.

But the loss of Rizwan Akram in particular will be keenly felt, since he served as chairman as well as skipper last year. A fairly radical reorganisation seems inevitable as the club adjusts to its new circumstances.