2021 European Championship: Dutch Win Final in Come From Behind Fashion

For the twenty-fourth time in the history, the Kingdom of the Netherlands has won the European Championship. In the final against Israel, the Devil was in the tail and the Dutch beat Israel 9-4

Despite opening the score in the second inning, on a single by Juremi Profar, the Netherlands trailed Israel for the biggest part of the game. With Juan-Carlos Sulbaran on the mound, things went wrong in the fourth inning. In the previous three frames, Sulbaran had kept hitless but in the fourth, he struggled to find the strike zone. A sac fly and an RBI single gave Israel the lead. Two innings later, Israel would extend its lead with two more runs. But eventually, in the bottom of the seventh, the Dutch turned the tables. A three-run home run by Roger Bernadina and a single to right field by Sharlon Schoop allowed the Dutch to score four times and take 5-4 lead.

In the bottom of the eighth inning, Israel’s manager Nate Fish opted for Schlo Lipetz as pitcher. Lipetz has kept the Italians in check rather well during the semi-final. But this time this tactics would not work. Lipetz hit Roger Bernadina with a pitch, then walked Ray-Patrick Didder and gave up a two-RBI double to Sharlon Schoop. Eventually, a towering two-run shot to left field by Dashenko Ricardo, was the final blow for Lipetz but also for Israel.

Wendell Floranus pitched the final two innings in a perfect way, striking out four for the save. The win went to Mike Groen, who pitched the seventh and gave up one hit. Charles Rossman took the loss. He gave up four two runs on four hits and squandered the lead that Israel had.

Sharlon Schoop was the best hitter for the Dutch as he went 4 for 5 with a double, three RBI and a run scored.