The North Sea Pro Series was a professional

cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by str ...

league featuring teams from the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

and

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...

, first contested in 2014. A joint venture between the Royal Dutch Cricket Board (KNCB) and

Cricket Scotland Cricket Scotland, formerly known as the Scottish Cricket Union, is the governing body of the sport of cricket in Scotland. The body is based at the National Cricket Academy, Edinburgh. The SCU was formed in 1908, but underwent a major restru ...

, the Pro Series comprised a 50-over tournament, the North Sea Pro 50, and a 20-over tournament, the North Sea Pro 20. The first fully professional league in either country, the competition had been described as "formulated to bridge the gap between club and international cricket for professional cricketers". The inaugural season featured four franchises, two from the Netherlands and two from Scotland, and both the 50-over and 20-over tournaments were won by the Highlanders, a Scottish franchise. In 2016, the North Sea 50 Trophy was held on 1 September as a final match between the Dutch 50 over champions the South Holland Seafarers and the Scottish 50 over champions Eastern Knights. The series did not return in 2017, replaced in Scotland by the Regional Pro Series featuring three domestic franchises, the first edition of which was held in 2016.

Background

Cricket Scotland and the KNCB are both associate members of the

International Cricket Council The International Cricket Council (ICC) is the world governing body of cricket. Headquartered in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, its members are 108 national associations, with 12 Full Members and 96 Associate Members. Founded in 1909 as the ' ...

(ICC), and both the

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

and Scottish national teams have played in multiple

World Cup A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the concept i ...

s. Both teams currently have

Twenty20 International A Twenty20 International (T20I) is a form of cricket, played between two of the international members of the International Cricket Council (ICC), in which each team faces a maximum of twenty overs. The matches have top-class status and are the ...

(T20I) status, while Scotland also holds One Day International (ODI) status. The impetus for the creation of the Pro Series was the exclusion of the Dutch and Scottish national sides from the new

Royal London One-Day Cup The Royal London One-Day Cup is a fifty-over limited overs cricket competition for the England and Wales first-class counties. It began in 2014 as a replacement for the ECB 40 tournament, which ran from 2010 to 2013. In contrast to its 40-ove ...

, which replaced the

Friends Provident Trophy The Friends Provident Trophy was a one-day cricket competition in the United Kingdom. It was one of the four tournaments in which the eighteen first-class counties competed each season. They were joined by teams from Scotland and Ireland. La ...

as the premier limited-overs competition in England and Wales. Andy Tennant, performance director for Cricket Scotland, described the Pro Series as "an ideal opportunity for us to stand on our own two feet and begin to develop a strong domestic professional competition for our best cricketers."John Pennington (1 April 2014)
"Dutch, Scottish Boards Launch North Sea Pro Series"
– Cricket World. Retrieved 20 January 2015. The North Sea Pro Series, contested in May and early June during the 2014 season, does not overlap with the

Scottish National Cricket League The Scottish National Cricket League was formed for the 1999 season after a conference season in 1998. Clubs from the four main district leagues and the Scottish Counties Championship formed the league. The NoSCA and Aberdenshire Grades leagues sta ...

or the Dutch

Topklasse The Derde Divisie (; en, Third Division), formerly known as Topklasse (; en, Top Class), is the fourth tier of football in the Netherlands, which had its inaugural season as a third tier in 2010–11 and as a fourth tier in 2016–17. The league ...

, the top-level club competitions in each country.

Franchises

Grounds

Champions

Pro 20 Championship

Pro 50 Championship

2014 season

Squads

Table

Pro 20 Championship

Pro 50 Championship

2015 season

Table

Pro 20 Championship

References

{{Cricket in Scotland Cricket in Scotland Recurring sporting events established in 2014 2014 establishments in the Netherlands 2014 establishments in Scotland Cricket in the Netherlands International cricket competitions Professional cricket leagues