Hampshire Men v Nottinghamshire
Rothesay County Championship
Friday 15-Monday 18 May (11am start)
Utilita Bowl
Reigning County Champions Nottinghamshire come to Utilita Bowl as Hampshire Men look to get off the bottom of the table.
Ben Brown’s side were defeated by Essex for the second time this season in their last outing at Chelmsford.
Kyle Abbott reached 500 First-Class wickets for the Rose and Crown as his second innings four-for threatened the host’s chase of 178, but a rapid unbeaten 90 from Matt Critchley ensured Essex picked up 19 points for their troubles.
Earlier on, Jake Lehmann reached yet another half-century for Hampshire, his fifth in eight innings, whilst Ben Brown continued his good form with the bat to make 73 and 57* with a second fifty of the summer for Nick Gubbins opening the batting.
On his return to the side from injury, James Fuller claimed 5/43, his fourth five-wicket haul for Hampshire.
The Outlaws played out a high-scoring draw against title challengers Surrey at Trent Bridge last week.
England opener Ben Duckett, who withdrew from the IPL to play in the County Championship, made an unbeaten second-innings double century to continue his good start to the season with the bat.
Joe Clarke made scores of 129 and 59, whilst Jack Haynes made twin fifties.
Pace bowler Josh Tongue claimed four wickets as he looks to lock in his place against New Zealand come 4th June, whilst spinner Liam Patterson-White took four wickets as the Three Feathers were bowled out for 449.
Hampshire
Hampshire have named a 15-player squad for their Rothesay County Championship match against Nottinghamshire at Utilita Bowl.
New signing Delano Potgieter is straight into the squad, with fast bowler Sonny Baker also included after his call up to the Test squad. He will join up with England on 24th May ahead of the first Test against New Zealand at Lord’s on 4th June.
Pacer Brad Wheal is named in a County Championship squad for the first time this year following his recovery from injury. He has taken five wickets for the Second XI so far this year and has bowled 63 overs across his three matches.
Left-arm spin bowling all-rounder Andrew Neal also comes into the squad following Liam Dawson’s retirement from First-Class cricket.
Ben Mayes misses out as he prepares for his A-levels.
Full Hampshire squad
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Kyle Abbott (87)
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Andrew Neal (17)
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Toby Albert (15)
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Felix Organ (3)
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Sonny Baker (95)
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Ali Orr (27)
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Ben Brown Captain † (10)
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Delano Potgieter (67)
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Nick Gubbins (31)
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Tom Prest (24)
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Eddie Jack (91)
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Brad Wheal (58)
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Jake Lehmann (33)
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Codi Yusuf (39)
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Fletcha Middleton (19)
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Nottinghamshire
Previewed by Jon Culley, ECB Reporters Network, supported by Rothesay
Captain: Haseeb Hameed
Head coach: Peter Moores
2025 finish: 1st
2025 leading run-scorer: Haseeb Hameed (1,258)
2025 leading wicket-taker: Brett Hutton (38)
Key winter moves: The loss of Pakistan seamer Mohammad Abbas to Derbyshire was an unexpected blow. ln his place, Mohammad Ali, another experienced Pakistan quick, is set to play in the last six Rothesay County Championship rounds; Australian seamer Fergus O’Neill, who took 21 wickets in four appearances at the start of 2025, could play in the first eight. The impressive South African wicketkeeper Kyle Verreynne returns and the early availability of England's Ben Duckett after cancelling his IPL deal is a real boost.
What we’re looking forward to seeing: The battle to be the county’s No 1 spinner. After his sensational end to the 2024 season, teenage off-spinner Farhan Ahmed was in pole position last April before Liam Patterson-White, the left-armer whose career had lost direction a little, was handed a recall and subsequently made himself impossible to leave out. Leg-spinner Calvin Harrison has moved to Northamptonshire but another left-armer, Joe Pocklington, who impressed in the Metro Bank One-Day Cup, adds to the competition.
Aiming to catch the Test selectors’ eye: Haseeb Hameed has had a fragmented international career so far but after 2,349 first-class runs at 58.72 over the last two seasons, including seven centuries, three of them doubles, two carrying his bat, he's surely worth another look. A pretty good player when last selected, he remains technically sound but scores at a markedly quicker tempo.
Final thought: After two seasons nearer the bottom of the Division One table than the top, Nottinghamshire’s dethroning of Surrey still seemed a slightly fanciful notion until it happened, thanks to Josh Tongue spearheading a brilliant win at the Kia Oval in the penultimate round. Tongue may not be around often this year and it would be a good moment for Dillon Pennington to realise his full potential. Defending their title will not be easy, but confidence is high.
Head-to-Head
Hampshire Men’s record in County Championship matches v Nottinghamshire:
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Played
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Won
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Lost
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Drawn
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Abandoned
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149
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43
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41
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65
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0
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Last five meetings:
- July 22-26 2025 | Utilita Bowl | Match Drawn
- May 9-11 2025 | Trent Bridge | Nottinghamshire won by 366 runs
- May 17-20 2024 | Trent Bridge | Hampshire won by five wickets
- July 19-22 2023 | Trent Bridge | Hampshire won by 116 runs
- April 6-9 2023 | Utilita Bowl | Hampshire won by eight wickets
Ticketing
Tickets for Hampshire Men v Nottinghamshire in the Rothesay County Championship are available online or on the gate.
Click here to buy tickets.
- Advance: £15
- On the day: £20
Coverage
The match will be live streamed on the Hampshire Cricket YouTube channel with commentary from Kevan James, Dave Bracegirdle, and guests.
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.
