The Dutch team returned from their month-long tour to India, the UAE and Kenya last week virtually empty-handed – they failed to qualify for the World Twenty20 championship in the Caribbean in May, shared a two-match ODI series with Kenya, and then lost their Intercontinental Cup match against the same opponents – and coach Peter Drinnen is not one to hide from the disappointment.

‘Obviously, we would have liked to have done better,’ he says. ‘At times we played some pretty good cricket, but we didn’t do it consistently enough, and that cost us.’

Drinnen cites the T20 qualifier in Dubai and Abu Dhabi as a case in point.

‘We went in well prepared after our week in Pune,’ he says, ‘and we began with a good win over Canada. We came back well from the defeat by the UAE, beating Kenya and Afghanistan, but then in the final match, against Ireland, we just weren’t good enough on the day.

‘It was the loss against the Emirates, where we suffered from costly mistakes in the field, that really hurt us – T20’s such a demanding format, there’s no time to correct those crucial mistakes. But we could have gone into a slide after that, and we didn’t – we came back with two good wins, one of them against the eventual winners of the tournament.’

Drinnen finds it difficult to explain why his side then had one of its worst days of the tour in the first ODI in Nairobi, coming back to take the second by 80 runs.

‘There’s no question we didn’t play well in the first one,’ he acknowledges. ‘Perhaps it had something to do with the change of format, or the disappointment of not having qualified in Dubai.

‘And I’m definitely not making excuses, but we had an incredibly hectic schedule, with the players getting just one day off in almost a month. Everyone was beginning to show signs of fatigue, and several of the bowlers – Bukhari, Borren, Ten Doeschate – were dealing with fitness problems.’

But then the side recovered enough to level the series, with the middle order stepping up to register a decent total – ‘and the bowlers stepped up and produced a very solid performance,’ Drinnen says, ‘dismissing Kenya for 120. This is an area we were looking for improved consistency and the performance on this day from the bowlers was certainly what we were after.’

All of this was, of course, without spearhead Edgar Schiferli, who had suffered a knee injury in the opening match of the T20 tournament and missed the rest of the tour. His absence, and those of batsman Daan van Bunge and off-spinner Muhammad Kashif, affected the make-up of the side in Nairobi.

‘Especially in the four-day game,’ Drinnen reflects, ‘it would have been nice to have the option of a second front line spinner. It may have made a difference, and there is no doubt we missed Kashif’s energy and commitment in the field.’

Despite the disappointing results, the coach believes that there are some positive features of the tour.

‘The opening partnership of Kervezee and Szwarczynski,’ he says, ‘was a real plus – it’s just a pity we won’t have it for most of this season because of Alexei’s county commitments, although we hope to have him in the side for the ODIs.

‘Mark Jonkman and Kashif bowled beautifully when they came into the team in Dubai, and Tim Gruijters (who made his ODI debut in Nairobi at the age of 18) did everything that was asked of him, showing that he could handle the demands of this environment.’

Drinnen goes on to single out Peter Borren and Ryan ten Doeschate as well, not least for their effort and commitment on the final day in Nairobi, when the Dutch were chasing an outright victory.

‘They set a great example,’ he says, ‘and it’s one we can all learn from.’

From here on, the focus shifts very clearly to next year’s World Cup tournament, with the World Cricket League Division 1, an ODI against Bangladesh, and the Clydesdale Bank 40 League competition all providing the training ground.

‘It’s ironic,’ Drinnen observes, ‘that having pushed for more and better international fixtures we’ve suddenly jumped to a programme which will give us the busiest season ever in Dutch cricket.

‘It will make unprecedented demands on the players’ time, but the 40 League has filled a void, and from a cricketing point of view it’s an enormous plus.’

As for the Intercontinental Cup, where the Dutch are effectively out of the running with three matches still to play, the absence of key players will create an opportunity for the coach and the selectors to look to the future, using these four-day matches as a proving-ground for some of the younger contenders.

‘We’ve got to look ahead,’ Drinnen says, ‘and use the availability issues which have plagued us in the past as an opportunity to blood some new talent.’