Hampshire aiming for rare first class victory at Middlesex in second Bob Willis Trophy match

They provide the opposition for what will be only the second first class game ever to be held at the Brunton Memorial Ground in Radlett, a town in Hertfordshire.

Hampshire are joint bottom of the embryonic South group, having been well beaten by 95 runs in their opening game against Sussex at Hove.

Middlesex, in contrast, top the table after their 22-point victory over London rivals Surrey at the Oval.

Both those games saw victories for counties who would have been playing in Division 2 of the Championship this summer against Division 1 opposition.

Radlett has ever only staged one first class game - last year’s Championship game between Middlesex and Glamorgan when Lord’s was being used during the World Cup.

It has hosted a handful of List A and T20 games, with Hampshire winning a Royal London Cup tie on the Duckworth/Lewis Method in 2016.

Hampshire, though, have only won two first class games away to Middlesex since the legendary hot summer of 1976.

The first was in 1991 and the last in 1999, when current Ageas Bowl Director of Cricket Giles White scored a second innings half-century at Lord’s. Will Kendall struck a half-century in each innings.

That game was also notable for a 99-run last-wicket stand in the visitors’ first innings between Derek Kenway (75 not out) and No 11 Peter Hartley (58).

Hampshire could welcome back James Vince and Liam Dawson from England ODI duty for the game at Middlesex which starts on Saturday.

They would certainly strengthen a batting order which flopped at Hove - dismissed for 153 and 150.

Tailender James Fuller’s 30 in the second innings was, remarkably, the top score by a Hampshire player in the game.

Glamorgan were the only county to score fewer runs in their first Willis Trophy game than Hampshire’s 303 for the loss of all 20 wickets.

It was the first time no Hampshire player had scored a half-century in a first class game since 1983.

Back then, Trevor Jesty was top scorer with just 29 in the first innings of a tour match against New Zealand at Bournemouth.

A year earlier, Mark Nicholas (21) was the top scorer as Hampshire were skittled for 70 and 56 in a Championship game against Notts at Trent Bridge.

They didn’t actually lose all 20 wickets in that match, though - Gordon Greenidge retired hurt in the first innings, with the West Indian legend batting at No 5 in the second.

Richard Hadlee took 7-25 in the first innings and Mike Hendrick 5-21 in the second, where Malcolm Marshall (17) was the only Hampshire batsman in double figures.

Middlesex batsman Nick Gubbins scored more runs in his first innings at the Oval last weekend than Hampshire did in either of their innings against Sussex.

Fresh from his 100 against the same opponents in a friendly, Gubbins hit 192 in his first innings of the Willis Trophy and added 60 more in the second.

Veteran Tim Murtagh also played a starring role in Middlesex’s victory.

He celebrated the fact he turned 39 during the game by bagging 5-47 off 25 overs in Surrey’s first innings.

That was his 32nd five-wicket haul for the county and he will be targeting more wickets against a Hampshire side who struggled against another right-arm seamer in Ollie Robinson at Hove.

Murtagh - who has played three Tests for Ireland - was joined in a cosmopolitan bowling attack by Miguel Cummins, Nathan Sowter, James Harris and Thilan Walallawita.

Barbados-born Cummins won 14 Test caps for the West Indies and made his first class debut for Middlesex last September.

Sowter was born in Australia, Harris hails from Wales and left-arm spinner Walallawita, 22, who was making his first class debut against Surrey, was born in Sri Lanka.