Tomorrow, we play Lancashire at Lord's in our penultimate clash of this year's fifty over campaign, in what is our only appearance at Lord's in the Metro Bank One Day Cup this summer.
Sadly we head into the clash having been eliminated from the competition, as defeat at the hands of the Leicestershire Foxes yesterday, at the Uptonsteel County Ground, saw our slim hopes of qualifying put to an end.
We will therefore be playing for pride only tomorrow, as we look to end the campaign with a couple of good performances to build some confidence ahead of a return to championship action in September.
That defeat leaves us sat in seventh place in the Group A table, with Surrey and Essex below us, whilst Lancashire currently sit in fourth place and in contention for one of the knockout places left available.
Middlesex's campaign came to a disappointing end on a slow and low wicket at Leicester, where early rain forced a reduction in overs to the game and losing the toss we were unsurprisingly asked to bat first.
On a tricky wicket, our batting never got going, and we were unable to push the pedal down at any stage in our innings without losing wickets, which proved costly, as we were dismissed inside 41 of the reduced 47 overs maximum we were due to face.
In reply an early inspired spell from Ethan Bamber just about kept our hopes alive, and he bowled his ten overs straight through from one end with the new ball, to finish with figures of 3 for 27, as the hosts were in trouble on 122 for 5 at the halfway stage of their chase.
With more rain forecast, another wicket would have got Middlesex's noses in front of the DLS calculations and put is in control of proceedings, however our former Captain, Peter Handscomb had other ideas, as he calmly steered his side closer to the target, batting sensible and patiently, doing enough to keep the Foxes in front of DLS before the rain that was promised arrived.
It left Leicestershire victorious, by 23 runs via the DLS method, to see them secure qualification to the knockouts and bag the sixth win of their campaign, from the seven games played.
Tomorrow's visitors Lancashire kept their own hopes of qualification alive with a comprehensive victory against Surrey at Guildford on Thursday, when they dismissed the South London side for just 153 and then chased the runs down without loss, inside 23 overs. That win moved Lancashire into the top four and did a huge amount of favours for their net run rate.
They arrive at Lord's with a mixed record, having won two, lost two, and had two game unfinished, which leaves them on six points and in touch with qualification.
Keaton Jennings has been their star man with the bat this term, leading the way in run-scoring for the red rose, with 247 runs at an average of 61.75. George Bell (193 runs at 48.25), Josh Bohannon (178 runs at 44.85), and Dane Vilas (174 at 43.50) are their other key contributors with the bat.
With the ball, it's been the pace of James Blatherwick that has led the way on the wicket-taking front, with the right-arm seamer taking ten wickets to date at an average of 24, whilst Will Williams (9 wickets at 17.11) and George Balderson (7 wickets at 18.85) come next.
Lancashire will be looking for a repeat performance of their outing at Guildford earlier this week to further lay claim to their hopes of progressing in the competition, whilst Middlesex will be looking to replicate the mauling we gave the Notts Outlaws on Tuesday at Radlett to finish our own campaign strongly, ahead of our final clash on Tuesday at Radlett against Yorkshire.
If you're planning on coming to Lord's tomorrow to watch the match, we look forward to seeing you there, and if not, then make sure you tune in to our live stream of the match, available for free in the match centre on the Middlesex website.
If you're hoping to catch the FIFA Women's World Cup Final too, then you'll be pleased to hear that MCC have confirmed they will be showing the match on TV screens in the Pavilion and in public bars around the ground.
Middlesex have named the following fourteen man squad for tomorrow's game against Lancashire:
FLASH RETAIL SALE - NEXT TUESDAY AT RADLETT - ALL ITEMS PRICED AT £15 OR LESS
If you're coming to Radlett on Tuesday to watch Middlesex take on Yorkshire in our final clash of this year's Metro Bank One Day Cup campaign, make sure you come and see us in the Middlesex retail tent, where we're having a FLASH SALE of all available items in the shop on the day - all priced at £15 or less!
Whether it's your choice of playing shirts from all three competitions this year for just £15, our 2023 graphic hoodies and t-shirts, training tops, training shorts and tracksuits, accessories, and a selection of old kit, named and numbered for just £5 - come along and take a look and grab yourself some real bargains.
Stock and sizes available are limited, and this offer applies to all items available on the day at Radlett!
When it's gone, it's gone, and it's for one day only, so make sure you come and see us early, in the Middlesex Retail Tent, by the Pedestrian Entrance gate at Radlett on Tuesday.
We look forward to seeing you at Radlett on Tuesday!
Middlesex
Lancashire
