Essex county player Ryan ten Doeschate heaped the same kind of misery upon Bermuda as he did on Kenya earlier this year, smashing a chanceless century during a record Dutch partnership which handed Holland the initiative on the opening day of the four-day Intercontinental Cup match at the L.C.DeVilliers Oval in Pretoria yesterday.

Ten Doeschate made Bermuda toil in the field on yet another rain-interrupted day of cricket as he clobbered 14 fours and two sixes in a score of 138, a total which he?s only exceeded once before during a knock of 158 in this same competition in Nairobi. Along with opener Tom DeGrooth (61), he put on 189 runs in 238 minutes, exceeding the previous Dutch record stand of 139 compiled by Bas Zuiderent and Luuk van Troost against Scotland in 2004.

But it wasn?t all doom and gloom for Bermuda on a day when play started an hour late and was twice punctuated by thunder and lightning during which 19 of the scheduled overs were lost.

The late wickets of ten Doeschate and DeGrooth meant there remains everything to play for when the teams resume battle this morning.

Holland desperately want to claim all 20 points from the match in order to keep alive their hopes of qualifying for next year?s cup final while Bermuda, who can no longer advance following their defeat to Canada and draw with Kenya, will still be keen to register their first victory in the competition.

And that will have been uppermost in their minds early yesterday when Saleem Mukuddem, Bermuda?s most successful bowler on the recent trip to Kenya, gave his team the best possible start when he ripped out Bas Zuiderent?s middle stump with his very first ball of the day as the opener played across the line.

But it was an early advantage on which Bermuda could never fully capitalise as DeGrooth and ten Doeschate methodically rebuilt the innings, taking their side from two for one to 83 for one in the 33 overs before lunch.

Ten Doeschate was the aggressor but had to work hard for his runs as paceman Kevin Hurdle sent down six maidens in an impressive, tight opening spell which yielded just 23 runs off 11 overs - a far cry from the wayward line and length that proved so costly in Mombasa last week.

Mukuddem was equally effective in slowing the run flow, conceding just 18 runs in nine overs that included four maidens in his first spell.

The Dutch pair, however, offered few chances although Irving Romaine spilled a difficult catch at deep fine leg off DeGrooth after he had raced some 20 yards to get under the ball.

But it was rain, a constant throughout this African tour, which again dictated much of yesterday?s play.

After groundstaff had worked wonders to ensure the pitch was playable just an hour after the scheduled start, following the weekend?s deluge, bolts of lightning crackled across the ground and rain again began to fall shortly after lunch.

Play resumed at 3 p.m., but only another three overs were possible before the umpires ordered an early tea with rain again sweeping across the Oval.

It was in the final session of the day of 32 overs that ten Doeschate and DeGrooth really asserted their authority, the tidy figures that Mukuddem, Hurdle and Dwayne Leverock had compiled before lunch quickly unravelling.

When play resumed at 98 for one after 41 overs, the Dutch pair quickly upped the tempo, bludgeoning 40 runs off the next five overs. While young right arm off spinner Rodney Trott, making his senior international debut, was brought into the attack, along with medium pacer David Hemp, Holland continue to push on. One hundred and fifty runs came up in the 49th over, and in the next over ten Doeschate completed his century.

It wasn?t until nine overs later with the score on 191 that Mukuddem finally found a way to break the partnership as DeGrooth drove to mid-off where Hurdle safely held the catch.

With the sky rapidly darkening ten Doeschate helped new bat Daan van Bunge carry the total to 224 before he too finally perished, lifting a Leverock delivery high into the air in front of the wicket where keeper Dean Minors stepped forward to take the catch. The Essex man, who also thumped two centuries for his county during the summer, had scored 138 off 196 balls during a 273-minute stay at the crease.

Alexei Kerezee (7 not out) joined van Bunge (17 not out) to safely see Holland through to the close without any further mishap.

Mukuddem returned Bermuda?s best figures of two for 63 in 20 overs, which included six maidens, while Hurdle was barely rewarded for his marathon 18-over effort, conceding 67 runs.

Leverock claimed one for 68 off 24 overs with three maidens.

Play will resume at 10 a.m. local time this morning.