After securing a brilliant and thrilling 2 run victory last night in the NatWest T20 Blast against Sussex at the Home of Cricket, Middlesex head to Chelmsford this evening, where they'll take on the bottom side in the South Group, Essex, needing to secure the first back to back win of the year to keep their T20 campaign alive.
Last night Middlesex showed all the qualities needed to turn over a decent Sussex side, as they defended a total of 147 for 6, to secure a nail biting win in front of another enthralled crowd of well over 20,000 at Lord's.
With Sussex needing just five runs to win from the final over of their chase, Tom Helm's last six balls epitomised the spirit Middlesex will need to show in their final three group matches if they are to reach the knockout stages of the competition.
You could argue that the Middlesex total was twenty runs short of what they'd have hoped to post after getting their innings off to a positive start yesterday, although defending that score with vigour, showing terrific intensity in the field, quality and control with the ball, and calm heads when needed, were enough to see them over the line to secure a much needed and crucial win.
Middlesex moved to sixth in the table as a result of last night's win, just two points behind Somerset who lie in third spot, with everything to play for as the campaign nears its climax.
Middlesex's last meeting with Essex, at Lord's a fortnight ago, saw them demolish tonight's opponents in comprehensive fashion, hitting a total of 203 before dismissing Essex for just 131 to win by a huge 72 run margin. If Middlesex can find a level of consistency this evening that has thus far eluded them, and get anywhere close to matching that performance of a fortnight ago, then a back to back win could well be on the cards for the Seaxes.
With just three matches remaining, Middlesex's win last night will give them plenty of confidence going into the final run in, and another win tonight will see qualification for the knockout stages become a real possibility, with just two further games to come against Gloucestershire at Uxbridge and Glamorgan in Cardiff.
Middlesex name a fourteen man squad for tonight's clash against Essex at Chelmsford, as follows:
Eoin Morgan (capt)
Tom Barber
Stephen Eskinazi
Steven Finn
James Franklin
Tom Helm
Ryan Higgins
Ravi Patel
George Scott
John Simpson (wk)
Tim Southee
Nathan Sowter
Paul Stirling
Robbie White
