Italy secure maiden qualification to next year's ICC T20 World Cup

The Italians made sure of their spot at the global showpiece despite a nine-wicket defeat against the Netherlands, who is qualified for the major tournament, in The Hague.

After being restricted to a total of 134-7 in their innings, Italy needed to hold Netherlands for at least 15 overs in order to qualify.

Michael Levitt (34) and Max O'Dowd (47 not out) got the hosts off to a flier in the powerplay that took the momentum away from Italy early on but the visitors made sure to stretch the match till the 17th over to help themselves book a berth to India and Sri Lanka next year.

The experienced spinner Roelof van der Merwe (3-15) helped Netherlands restrict Italy to a moderate total picking three wickets and giving away just 15 runs in his four overs.

Italy kept losing wickets in regular intervals and couldn't stitch together a partnership to sustain the innings as Kyle Klein's (2-27) spell aided by van der Merwe's tight bowling didn't allow the visitors to score easily.

A steady knock by Benjamin Manenti (30) and a late blitz by Grant Stewart (25) pushed Italy to a total of 134-7 in their 20 overs, which Netherlands eventually chased down comfortably, but it was enough for Italy to qualify for their first-ever World Cup tournament.