Vitality Blast Preview | Middlesex v Glos
28 May 2023
Gloucestershire return to T20 action at 14:30 on Bank Holiday Monday when they face Middlesex at Merchant Taylors’ School, Northwood.
Glos are looking for their first win in this year’s competition after falling to defeat in their opening two fixtures, a fate also suffered by opponents Middlesex, who currently prop up the table on net run rate.
T20 Blast tickets for Gloucestershire v Surrey next Friday night available here.
Team news
Dale Benkenstein names a fourteen-player squad for the fixture, adding an injury-free Marchant de Lange to the group for the first time since the four-day match against Derbyshire earlier this month.
The South African could make his T20 debut for Shire, following Ollie Price and Ben Charlesworth, who made their debuts against Kent and Glamorgan, respectively.
Netherlands international Paul van Meekeren drops out of the squad along with 19-year-old Academy prospect Joe Phillips.
Your 14-man Gloucestershire squad to face Middlesex:
Last time out
Glos fought hard in the final ten overs against Glamorgan, taking the game to the final six deliveries before eventually falling to a two-wicket defeat against the Welsh county.
Ben Charlesworth impressed on debut, scoring 56 from 39 deliveries to rescue Shire from 49/4 with help from van Buuren and Ollie Price who scored quick thirties.
Price showed his value with the ball too, taking 2/23 in three overs including the key wickets of Ingram and Cooke.
David Payne’s 3/17 and Matt Taylor’s 2/21, both from four overs, helped Shire to a position where Glamorgan needed 14 from 7 with just two wickets remaining, but some big hitting from the visitors’ lower order helped them over the line.
Our opponents
Middlesex head into the game also looking for their first win of the Blast campaign after falling to defeats against Surrey and Hampshire Hawks in their opening two fixtures.
Former Gloucestershire all-rounder Ryan Higgins will face the Club for the first time since leaving in the summer of 2022 after five years in Bristol.
Led by Stephen Eskinazi, who played alongside David Payne in the Perth Scorchers that won the BBL last winter, Middlesex will hope Pieter Malan can continue his fine form after hitting 80 from just 45 balls against Hampshire last Friday.
The Middlesex squad to face Gloucestershire
Stephen Eskinazi*, Martin Andersson, Joe Cracknell, Blake Cullen, Jack Davies, Nathan Fernandes, Tom Helm, Ryan Higgins, Max Holden, Luke Hollman, Pieter Malan, Toby Roland-Jones, John Simpson, Thilan Walallawita.
Last meeting
The last time Middlesex hosted the Shire in the T20 Blast was at Radlett in 2022 when Richard Johnson’s side posted a Club record score of 229/9 in their 20 overs.
Shire made a good fist of chasing down 230 but were stifled by the consistent loss of wickets as they eventually fell 30 runs short of the target.
Dale Benkenstein’s men will hope a change of venue brings with it a change of fortune for the visitors.
How to watch
Gloucestershire face Middlesex in the Vitality Blast at 14:30 on Monday 29 May at Merchant Taylors’ School, Northwood.
You can watch every ball in the Glos Cricket Match Centre. Coverage starts at 14:15.
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