Don’t talk about home advantage to Middlesex when it comes to Lords and the Blast.
Prior to tonight’s encounter with Somerset in 9 games across this year, 2023 and 2022 Lords’ long-term tenants have won just once, against Kent back in June 2022. Go back a further year and it’s not any better, only the visit of Sussex yielding a surprisingly big home win amidst defeats to Kent, Essex and Surrey.
Lords these days is generally reserved for the most local Blast fixtures, Kent, Sussex, Essex and of course, Surrey, with Somerset replacing Sussex in 2022 and Glamorgan making the lengthy trip from Wales this season . Same results though. A comfortable win for the Glamorgan and a win for Somerset, albeit a narrow one by just 2 wickets with 2 balls to spare two years ago. At Lords of late, away fans swell the crowd and drain the bars, usually in celebratory abandon.
Somerset fans will have been cheered tonight when Lewis Gregory won the toss and chose to field, confidence buoyed by the inclusion of current leading wicket taker in right arm quick Ben Green. Middlesex conversely were without virus-stricken Leus du Plooy, who had top scored for the Joberg Super Kings in this years SA20, but is yet to find his white ball mojo at Middlesex.
It did not take long for that decision to look a very sound one as both Middlesex openers Steve Eskinazi and Martin Andersson skied catches off Australian international Riley Meredith and England’s Craig Overton respectively, to be quickly followed in a similar manner by Max Holden off Meredith. Gregory, Overton and Davey with safe hands. Middlesex floundering at 19 for 3, all to shots that the batters will not wish to look back on too fondly.
Meredith and Overton in command
There was plenty of life in the Lord’s wicket and Meredith and Overton relentlessly exploited it with smart, accurate and aggressive bowling to which Middlesex had no answer. Cracknell had laboured to six of eleven balls before edging a rising ball behind to give Meredith his third wicket and leave Middlesex on 20 for four at the start of the sixth over. By the end of the powerplay Middlesex had added just two more and were quickly to lose Jack Davies holing out to Dickson in front of the Grandstand off Overton for just two.
With Middlesex 5 down for 23, the assembled press contingent scrabbled through the record books. Metaphorically of course, no actual books to be seen these days.
They will have found that Middlesex’s lowest Blast total was a meagre 80 against Kent at Lords in 2021 and the lowest against Somerset 125 at Taunton way back in 2010. The rapid departures of Higgins, Hobart Hurricane Meredith’s fourth scalp of the night and another flailing skier from De Caires off Josh Davey suggested that at 41 for 7, both those records would tumble. Middlesex reached 50, to loud, if somewhat ironic applause, but then immediately lost Luke Hollman and Blake Cullen off successive balls in Ben Green’s first over. 9 down for 50, Middlesex had at least passed Northamptonshire’s lowest ever Blast score of 44 and it was the cue for Tom Helm and Noah Cornwell to swing with the devil may care freedom of men with nothing to lose. Meaty pulls and a superb lofted Helm straight drive left onlookers wondering why the previous 9 Middlesex batters had failed to lay a glove on rampant Somerset. Sadly, it wasn’t to last and Tom Helm lofted Josh Davey into the safe hands of Roelof van der Merwe leaving Middlesex on 78 all out with a new and unwanted record, two shy of their previous lowest 80.
Concern for Cornwell adds to Middlesex woes
As well as Somerset and particularly Meredith bowled however, this was no easy pitch to bat on and Tom Helm was quick to prove that point as Smeed top edged in a manner similar to many Middlesex dismissals. It could have been two when Cullen found Tom Kohler-Cadmore’s inside edge only for Jack Davies to spill a tricky chance.
Noah Cornwell, Middlesex’s highly promising left arm quick is celebrating his call up to England’s Under 19s. However, his evening came to a premature and painful close when Tom Banton smashed a return chance that appeared to catch young Noah’s wrist. He and Middlesex will be hoping that bruising is the worst outcome, but it did not look good. It would be harsh indeed to lose his England opportunity to injury in a seemingly lost cause. Worse perhaps when poor Noah had no blame in its loss.
From there, where Middlesex had conspicuously failed, Blast champions Somerset found a way to adapt to the testing pitch. Sharp running by Kohler-Cadmore and Tom Banton, combined with occasional meaty drives eased them past fifty with no further loss. From there, it was a race to an inevitable conclusion. Banton lofted Higgins into the Grandstand boxes to level the scores before reverse sweeping for four to power Somerset to a nine wicket win with the best part of eight overs to spare.
Champion form from Somerset and particularly Meredith with his 4 for 12 . Another very disappointing Lords evening for the hosts, who were unable to adapt to tricky conditions as the visitors had done and will be hoping for much better fortune when they return to face Essex on Thursday.
