France caused a minor upset in the second annual Continental Twenty20 championship at Thurlede on Saturday, registering a notable victory over holders Netherlands A in the final of the four-team tournament.

That this result was no fluke was clear from the fact that the French had already beaten their hosts in the opening round-robin match, and indeed they remained unbeaten throughout the tournament.

Their star performers included spinner William Singh, who took four for 15 in the final, and batsman Jonathan Houghton, who batted consistently throughout, making 74 in the first game against the Dutch and contributing a 31-ball 43 as France chased down a total of 153 for seven in the final.

But it was a thoroughly convincing team performance by France, who had suffered a setback before the first ball was bowled when their classiest batsman, Arun Ayyavooraju, suffered a dislocated finger during the warm-up and took no part in the tournament.

For the home side it was a disappointing effort as they continued their preparation for next month’s European Championships in Jersey. There were flashes of good form from some of the batsmen: Jelte Schoonheim, Tom Heggelman, Wesley Barresi (who made a not-out 50 in the last round-robin match against Belgium which took them into the final) and Steven de Bruin, but they did not fire consistently, and the bowling and fielding were generally below the level one might expect.

Belgium, who beat debutants Luxembourg to take third place in the tournament, posted the highest total of the competition, 219 for four, when they started off with a comfortable win over the same opponents, and Nirvam Shah and Javed Iqbal were consistent performers with the bat.

And the most remarkable individual performance of the event came from Belgian leg-spinner Aamir Iqbal, who took six for 18 in that game. At one point he claimed four wickets in five balls, twice missing out on a hat-trick as the Luxemburgers had no answer to his wiles.

For Luxembourg, who had no previous experience of the shortest form of the game, the tournament was an extended tutorial in Twenty20 tactics, and despite their record of four defeats they will take comfort from the fact that they twice dismissed their opponents on the second day, even bowling out the eventual champions for a relatively modest 163.

But the degree of fitness required may have come as something of a shock, and several members of the squad were among the walking wounded by the final afternoon.

The Schiedam tournament is undoubtedly an attractive addition to the European calendar, and it is to be hoped that it takes root in an increasingly demanding schedule. With the ICC’s plans for expanding the qualification process for the World Twenty20 championship, the opportunity for more countries to build up their experience in this form of the game can only be welcomed.

Scores:

Netherlands A 134-8 (20 overs, W Barresi 36; T Liddiard 4-33); France 135-4 (18.4 overs, JM Houghton 74)

Belgium 219-4 (20 overs, Nirvam Shah 80, Javed Iqbal 56, S Newport 54*); Luxembourg 146 (18.1 overs, P Monico 46; Aamir Iqbal 6-18)

Luxembourg 125-8 (20 overs, R Neale 55; W Barresi 3-17); Netherlands A 128-3 (16.4 overs, JD Schoonheim 36, TJ Heggelman 44*)

Belgium 168-5 (20 overs, Nirvam Shah 46, Javed Iqbal 58); France 169-6 (18.4 overs, Adnan Musharraf 45, Ali Akbar 37* in 9 balls)

Belgium 133-8 (20 overs, Javed Iqbal 35, Tauqir Shah 39*; TS Braat 3-27); Netherlands A 137-4 (18.1 overs, W Barresi 50*)

France 163 (18 overs, JM Houghton 38; R Viswanath 3-23); Luxembourg 113-9 (20 overs)

3rd/4th play-off: Belgium 161 (15.4 overs, S Newport 47; P Merkl 3-20); Luxembourg 124-9 (20 overs, P Monico 35; Aamir Iqbal 3-13)

Final: Netherlands A 153-7 (20 overs, ST de Bruin 49; W Singh 4-15); France 157-5 (19.5 overs, JM Houghton 43, Adnan Musharraf 36)