Match Preview: Hampshire Hawks Men v Middlesex, Vitality Blast

Hampshire Hawks Men v Middlesex

Vitality Blast

Friday, 13th June (7pm start)

Utilita Bowl, Southampton

Hawks Men return to the Utilita Bowl on Friday evening to face Middlesex following their defeat to Kent at The Spitfire Ground.

Birrell's Hawks will be determined to bounce back against the Seaxes, having recorded their best ever-start to the Blast since 2017 in their opening three games, winning all of them.

Joe Weatherley’s calm and collected 63* helped the Hawks recover from 20-2 in the third over, whilst Chris Wood’s 2-32 takes him to three wickets away from 200 in the Vitality Blast, having previously reached 200 Hampshire T20 wickets the week before.

Hampshire Squad

Hawks Men have named a 15-player squad for the visit of Middlesex to Utilita Bowl.

Liam Dawson returns from international duty, with Lhuan-dre Pretorius also available having arrived off the back of South Africa A’s tour of West Indies.

Pace bowler Eddie Jack is also added to the squad having featured for England Lions against India A, where he took the wickets of international stars KL Rahul, Yashasvi Jaiswal, and Dhruv Jurel.

Hampshire Hawks Men

Middlesex

Captain: Stephen Eskinazi

Overseas players: Kane Williamson (New Zealand, full competition) and Josh Little (Ireland, full competition)

Finals Day appearances: One (2008)

Titles: One (2008)

2024 finish: Eighth (South Group)

2024 leading runscorer: Martin Andersson (282)

2024 leading wicket taker: Luke Hollman (23)

Key winter moves: The signings of a world-class batter in Kane Williamson and left-arm seamer Josh Little, a man with stacks of experience of franchise cricket, is a statement of intent. Last year’s leading run-scorer Martin Andersson has left for Derbyshire and it remains to be seen if another new arrival, Zafar Gohar will form a two-pronged spin attack alongside Luke Hollman.

The big question: Can Middlesex live up to head coach Richard Johnson’s great expectations? Johnson declared pre-season it was time to move from ‘developing to winning’. Williamson and Little’s presences will help, but youngsters invested in over recent years need to emulate Hollman’s feats from 2024 if the Seaxes are to improve on their record since lifting the trophy in 2008.

Wildcard watch: Joe Cracknell. The 25-year-old regressed a little last season, when shifted around the order and unable to settle into a specific role. However, whether in the powerplay or as a finisher he’s shown his ability as a big-hitter and a return to his best could see him add to the three appearances made for London Spirit in the inaugural Hundred of 2021.

Final thought: The only way is up for Middlesex, but their long-suffering supporters have heard that before. Andersson was 41^st among tournament runscorers last season while Max Holden’s strike-rate of 160 was strong but he rarely batted long enough. Williamson’s presence should help the pace the innings, which had some good starts but too many collapses. Hollman, fifth in last season’s list of wicket-takers can shine again, while Little’s experience in the powerplay and death overs will be key to any improvement.

Tickets

Tickets for Hampshire Hawks Men’s Vitality Blast match against Middlesex are available here.

Gates open at 5:30pm.

Coverage

A live stream will be available for the match and a link to this stream will be available in the at www.utilitabowl.com/cricket, along with a live match centre with the scorecard, statistics and insight available throughout the match.

Weather Forecast

Please follow the link to view the latest weather forecast for Utilita Bowl: https://www.bbc.co.uk/weather/2637487