Hampshire Hawks v The Blaze & Middlesex
Vitality Blast Double Header
Wednesday 8 July
Hawks Women v The Blaze – 3pm start
Hawks Men v Middlesex – 7pm start
Utilita Bowl
Hampshire Hawks are in action for the final double header at Utilita Bowl this season, with Hawks Men already through to the quarter-finals with three games still to play.
Hawks Women’s bonus point win against Lancashire kept them in top spot on 32 points, with a tie or a win seeing them through to their first Vitality Blast Women’s Finals Day.
Hawks Men defeated Kent Spitfires to go eight points clear at the top of the table, and are through off the back of Lancashire v Derbyshire on Monday 6 July being a tie, meaning James Vince’s side are guaranteed one of the two best third-place spots.
The Blaze, effectively Nottinghamshire Women as they will become next year, are in fourth place with former Hampshire all-rounder Charli Knott their leading wicket-taker. Her 16 wickets are the second-most in the competition, whilst Marie Kelly leads the way with the bat with her 240 runs.
Middlesex are second from bottom in the South Group but come into the game off the back of a commanding victory over third-placed Essex on Sunday. All-rounder Luke Hollman’s 185 is the top of the pack, whilst the experienced pacer Tom Helm is the Seaxes’ leading wicket-taker with 10, having become Middlesex’s all-time leading T20 wicket-taker.
Hampshire Hawks Squads
Hampshire Hawks Women
Hawks Women have named a 15-player squad for their Vitality Blast match against The Blaze.
Maia Bouchier has joined up with England ahead of their Test match against India at Lord’s, which starts on Friday 10 July.
Daisy Gibb makes her return following an operation on her knuckles, whilst off spinner Ava Lee is also included.
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Georgia Adams Captain (1)
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Rhianna Southby † (17)
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Naomi Dattani (11)
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Pippa Sproul † (7)
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Daisy Gibb (15)
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Megan Sturge (3)
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Hannah Hardwick (19)
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Francesca Sweet (13)
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Nancy Harman (25)
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Poppy Tulloch (24)
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Ava Lee (33)
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Bex Tyson (35)
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Ella McCaughan (8)
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Amanda-Jade Wellington (10)
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Abi Norgrove (12)
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Hampshire Hawks Men
Hampshire Hawks Men have named a 13-player squad for their clash with Middlesex.
Sonny Baker rejoins England’s IT20 squad for their series against India, but 17-year-old quick Manny Lumsden returns ahead of the first Youth Test against South Africa U19 on Friday 10 July.
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Toby Albert † (15)
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Andrew Neal (17)
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Hilton Cartwright (35)
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Ali Orr † (27)
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Scott Currie (44)
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Tristan Stubbs (30)
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James Fuller (26)
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James Vince Captain (14)
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Eddie Jack (91)
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Joe Weatherley (5)
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Manny Lumsden (43)
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Chris Wood (25)
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Ben Mayes † (21)
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The Opposition
The Blaze
Previewed by Jon Culley, ECB Reporters Network supported by Rothesay
Captain: Kirstie Gordon
Overseas players: Charli Knott (Australia, all)
2026 standings: Semi-finalists
2026 leading run-scorer: Marie Kelly (240)
2026 leading wicket-taker: Charli Knott (16)
Key winter moves: The Blaze have signed talented Australia A all-rounder Charli Knott, who brings experience of the Women’s Premier League in India, the Women’s Big Bash and The Hundred, and hit five white-ball half-centuries for Hampshire Women last summer. Meanwhile, Emma Jones, formerly with Surrey, can provide useful runs in the middle order.
The big question: The Blaze, like others, will be depleted because of the clash with the Women’s T20 World Cup. They lose England’s Amy Jones and Nat Sciver-Brunt and Ireland’s Orla Prendergast, although it may be the unavailability of their three Scots, Kathryn and Sarah Bryce and Blaze skipper Kirstie Gordon, that is the most keenly felt. Can those left step up a level?
Wildcard watch: United States international Ella Claridge, whose country missed out on qualification for the T20 World Cup, has a chance to make her presence felt in the Vitality Blast. The 24-year-old wicketkeeper batter will carry some responsibility in the absence of Scotland’s Sarah Bryce and England’s Amy Jones but has proved before that she can rise to the challenge under pressure.
Final thought: Even stripped of six internationals, The Blaze still have the capacity to mount a challenge for silverware. Marie Kelly, a very capable top-order batter and excellent fielder, will captain the side, with experienced England batter Tammy Beaumont as a sounding board as well as a key source of runs. Charley Phillips, Grace Ballinger and Cassidy McCarthy are three top-notch seamers, while former England all-rounder Georgia Elwiss has enjoyed a couple of outstanding seasons with bat and ball.
Head-to-Head:
Hampshire Hawks Women’s record in T20 matches v The Blaze:
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Played
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Won
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Tied
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Lost
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No Result
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2
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0
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0
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2
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0
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Recent meetings:
- July 18 2025 | Utilita Bowl | The Blaze won by 27 runs
- July 4 2025 | Utilita Bowl | The Blaze won by 37 runs
Middlesex Men
Previewed by Jon Batham, ECB Reporters Network supported by Rothesay
Captain: Leus du Plooy
Overseas players: Eathan Bosch (all)
Finals Day appearances: one (2008)
Titles: One (2008)
2026 standings: 5th in South Group
2026 leading run-scorer: Luke Hollman (185)
2026 leading wicket-taker: Tom Helm (10)
Key winter moves: Peter Fulton has arrived from New Zealand as head coach, but stellar batter Kane Williamson won’t be returning for a second stint and leading run-scorer from 2025, former skipper Stephen Eskinazi has left for Leicestershire. England U19 World Cup final century maker Caleb Falconer has been added to the squad and seems sure to make his Blast debut.
The big question: Can Peter Fulton succeed where others have fallen short and revive the white-ball fortunes of a Middlesex team who have reached only two T20 quarter-finals since Toby Radford led them to the trophy in 2008? Two-metre Pete has form, leading previous team Canterbury to glory twice in New-Zealand’s premier white-ball competition, the Ford Trophy, though that is a 50-over format.
Wildcard watch: Caleb Falconer – the 19-year-old right-hander announced himself to the cricketing world with that century at the U19 World Cup final in Zimbabwe, a knock which earnt him a Hundred contract with Southern Brave later this summer. He recently made his first-class debut and looks sure to play a part for a team which needs a creative spark in the shorter format.
Final thought: Middlesex have an exciting crop of youngsters like Falconer, Sebastian Morgan, Naavya Sharma and others, some of whom took their first steps in the Blast last season. The challenge will be, with no sign of a marquee batter on the horizon, last year’s leading scorer Eskinazi having left, and wicket-keeper/batter Joe Cracknell set to miss the start of the competition with a broken finger, whether Middlesex set and chase down targets in a format where the power hitters are king.
Head-to-Head:
Hampshire Hawks Men’s record in T20 matches v Middlesex:
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Played
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Won
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Tied
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Lost
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No Result
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42
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25
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1
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14
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7
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Recent meetings:
- May 31 2026 | Merchant Taylors’ School | Hawks won by eight wickets (with 36 balls remaining)
- July 9 2025 | Merchant Taylors’ School | Hawks won by three wickets (with two balls remaining)
- June 13 2025 | Utilita Bowl | Match Tied
- July 6 2024 | Radlett | Match Abandoned (without a ball bowled)
- June 14 2024 | Utilita Bowl | No Result
Tickets
Tickets for Hampshire Hawks’ Vitality Blast double header against The Blaze and Middlesex are available here.
Buy the day before the game and save £6 per ticket, with entry for U17s just £5.
Coverage
The match will be live streamed on the Hampshire Cricket YouTube channel with radio commentary available on the BBC Sport website and app, and on BBC Sounds.
A live match centre with scorecard, statistics, and insight will be available via www.utilitabowl.com/cricket/news.
Fans can stay updated on the match via the Hampshire Cricket X/Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook accounts, where regular score updates, photos from the game, and match clips will be shared.
Weather Forecast
Please follow the link to view the latest weather forecast for Utilita Bowl: https://www.bbc.co.uk/weather/2634447.
