Middlesex 117 all out (32.4 overs); Hampshire 121 for nought (27.1 overs) - Hampshire win by 10 wickets
International stars Jackson Bird and Fidel Edwards sliced through Middlesex as Hampshire won back-to-back home games in the Royal London One-Day Cup.
The pair made sure the Middlesex top order came and went in a constant flurry – leaving the visitors five for 34 after their 10 over spell – as the visitors could only muster 117.
Leg spin talent Mason Crane continued the annihilation with a mature four-for to blast out the tail before Jimmy Adams and Michael Carberry knocked off the target without a fuss. After Eoin Morgan elected to bat it didn’t take long for the hosts to strike.
Edwards flew back on Wednesday after stint in Caribbean Premier League but overcame his jetlag in just three deliveries – former England Test opener Sam Robson edging behind. Second ball of the next over Bird – on his Hampshire List A debut – struck, as he had another former England star Nick Compton leg before.
Skipper Eoin Morgan was out in the same way three balls later as Hampshire left the visitors floundering five for three by the end of the second over.
Dawid Malan gave Middlesex a 25-ball respite, the batsman scoring two boundaries, before he loosely drove to Chris Wood at mid-off off Edwards. And the speedy Barbadian had Nick Gubbins caught at first slip by James Vince the very next ball to leave the score on 22 for five before John Simpson left the hat-trick ball alone.
Both Edwards and Bird – first spell figures of three for 15 and two for 19 respectively – came out of the attack but there was no respite for the timid Middlesex batsman. Wicketkeeper Simpson was the next to fall driving a simple catch to Adams in the covers to give Wood a wicket with his fifth delivery.
And spin, in the shape of teenager Crane, worked as well as pace when James Franklin – who patiently scored 18 amongst the onslaught – was pinned lbw. James Harris and Ollie Rayner added a sibilance of respectability to the innings with a 55-run stand for the eighth wicket.
The pair reached 100 before Harris swiped to Will Smith close in on the off side for 32 – to give Crane his second. And the leg spinner bagged a third two overs later as Rayner’s resolve ended on 24 – the off-break bowler trudging off after he was lbw sweeping.
Last wicket duo Toby Roland-Jones and Junaid Khan had some fun slogging three quick boundaries but Crane ended with a four-for as the Pakistani international picked out Smith – Middlesex reaching a well-below par 117.
Adams and Michael Carberry got stick into the chase with vigour, the openers making the pitch look less of a minefield with some crisp boundaries. Carberry in particular played the short ball with his trademark power – middling a pull to launch a six over square leg before a sumptuous cut for four.
The majestic former England man reached a carefree fifty from 42 balls, including eight fours, brought up with single down the ground. Adams also scored a half-century – his first since his 61 against Middlesex in the County Championship in May – to boost his confidence – as Hampshire successfully chased with over 27 overs to spare.
