Van Bunge was named in the Netherlands squad for the 2003 Cricket World Cup in South Africa, and it was his performances in this tournament that brought him to the attention of a wider audience.
In his first World Cup match, he scored 62 out of a team total of 136 against India,[1] and in his second, he captured 3 of the 4 England wickets to fall, his victims being Nick Knight, Michael Vaughan and Andrew Flintoff.
The 2005 ICC Trophy saw the Netherlands in a four-way battle for the fifth and final 2007 World Cup qualifying spot, with the first sudden-death match against Denmark.
Much rumour surrounds the negotiations which took place at this time, but it seems that he was unable to make the assurances to the national selectors regarding availability, again citing career and study demands, but also appearing to give preference to his club, Excelsior.
A definite course of direction was needed after this incident and in 2010 he started his PE bachelor, he finished the four-year study in 2014 and also received the academic medal for being the student of his year.
The World Cup 2015 qualification tournament in New Zealand was less successful, due to an elbow injury that saw him lose 25% of his strength is his left arm.