T20 v Gloucestershire 4th June 2023

[Paul W]

We stick with the same squad we had against Somerset-

https://www.middlesexccc.com/news/2023/06/squad-preview-gloucestershire-v-middlesex-vitality-blast-2

[MIDDLE EXILE]

Put in again, Josh, Blake, and Thilan in, Martin, Toby, and Nate omitted.

[Peter H]

DeCaires listed at 8? Surely he's not been picked for his bowling...

[Peter H]

Not a good start...:(

[Jonathan Winsky]

I suppose that considering Middlesex’s form and especially the performance on Friday v Somerset at Taunton, it is great to see us making three changes in the hope that the changes can turn around our fortunes, unless the changes are enforced by injuries.

I expected that Martin Andersson and Nathan Fernandes would continue in the side, but they are not included.

Josh de Caires has bowled (sometimes successfully) in our 2nd XI’s Twenty20 matches this season, although I am not sure whether he will be asked to turn over his arm, as the way our 1st XI has used spin so far in their campaign makes it doubtful that we will bowl enough overs to enable Luke Hollman and Thilan Walallawita to bowl both their full allocation, let alone require overs of part-time spin.

Hopefully Walallawita will do well upon his return to our side.

As two of Gloucestershire’s three defeats in this campaign have been tight matches and we gave them a scare in the reverse match at Merchant Taylors’ School, maybe we might do OK today.

Hopefully we will recover well from the early loss of Stevie Eskinazi. How would there be a possibility of de Caires getting a bowl if we don't set enough runs for Glos' chase to go the distance?

[MIDDLE EXILE]

Great to see Sue Redfern as a standing umpire, the first woman to stand in a men's professional game in this country.

[Peter H]

Great to see Sue Redfern as a standing umpire, the first woman to stand in a men's professional game in this country.

Hear, hear!

[Peter H]

So...de Caires in at number 6.

[MIDDLE EXILE]

DeCaires listed at 8? Surely he's not been picked for his bowling...

I think it inconceivable that Josh will NOT get a bowl. more likely two than four

[adelaide]

I find it perfectly conceivable. It may not get as far as ten overs.

Watching Glos's out of sync, replay-free live stream is a reminder of what Middlesex are good at! Unfortunately not T20. This must be the worst year yet.

[MIDDLE EXILE]

I find it perfectly conceivable. It may not get as far as ten overs.

Watching Glos's out of sync, replay-free live stream is a reminder of what Middlesex are good at! Unfortunately not T20. This must be the worst year yet.

And Josh strikes with his 2nd ball !

[Jonathan Winsky]

The commentators said throughout Middlesex’s innings that a challenging score could be what we ended up posting. The key to winning will not only be getting the score down (as we have just about done), but taking wickets regularly (as we can not yet be said to have done).

The issue of whether or not Josh de Caires would bowl had some salience for me, as my first thought upon seeing that he was in our side and that the player who I had initially selected my wildcard in Know Your Cricket, Martin Andersson, was not included, was that I should make de Caires my wildcard. However, when I realised that we had Luke Hollman and Thilan Walallawita in our side who could also bowl spin, I had second thoughts, and made Hollman my wildcard. So far, it looks like I should have selected de Caires after all! I wouldn’t have thought that de Caires will be pleased about the 20 balls he faced yielding 18 runs and one boundary, but that was still better than some of his colleagues!

It is great that Jack Davies seems to have seized the opportunity given to him.

As Gloucestershire used plenty of slow bowling, it is handy that we also have the players who I would like to think are able to bowl a similar quantity of overs.

[Paul W]

I find it perfectly conceivable. It may not get as far as ten overs.

Watching Glos's out of sync, replay-free live stream is a reminder of what Middlesex are good at! Unfortunately not T20. This must be the worst year yet.

Reminds me of about 20 years ago, when we got a digital tv before our neighbour. I could hear him cheering a goal, or a wicket two or three seconds before it happened in our house, which kind of spoilt the suspense somewhat.

In other news, I wish commentators everywhere would pronounce Thilan Walallawita's surname correctly. That's working on the assumption the player himself knows how to pronounce his surname. Maybe he's just too nice to correct people-

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_7vgVwfS29Y

[adelaide]

Reminds me of about 20 years ago, when we got a digital tv before our neighbour. I could hear him cheering a goal, or a wicket two or three seconds before it happened in our house, which kind of spoilt the suspense somewhat.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_7vgVwfS29Y

... and it's even more of a delay with HD.

[Paul W]

Well, unless Gloucestershire do what we did against them a few days ago, they look to have this well under control.

[Paul W]

Well, that was completely and utterly predictable, wasn't it?

I know he didn't have good game today, and blows a bit hot and cold, but if I was someone with a bit of T20 ability (Joe Cracknell) I'd be planning my escape route from Middlesex. From his point of view, if he wants to get noticed, he needs to be playing for a team capable of reaching finals day. The greater exposure could lead to a hundred contract and franchise opportunities around the world. Playing with better players makes you become a better player yourself. I don't see how he can learn and progress playing for us.

[Jonathan Winsky]

I am increasingly resigning myself to the possibility that Middlesex will have to go away from home for our quarter-final, as we did on three (or some will say four) of the four occasions we reached at least that stage. If we can start registering some wins, maybe a home quarter-final is not out of the question.

Well done to Josh de Caires and Luke Hollman on both bowling economically and taking a wicket. If only we had more runs to defend. And more straws to clutch at! Then again, I can think of matches when the amount of straws we had to clutch at were actually fewer than today.

[MIDDLE EXILE]

Well, all the bowlers were relatively economical, but when you're only defending seven an over it's all a bit irrelevant. To lose by seven wickets with ten balls left is a comprehensive defeat and no positives can be drawn from another below-par performance. I hardly think encouraging players to desert a sinking ship is very helpful either,

[adelaide]

Well, that was completely and utterly predictable, wasn't it?

I know he didn't have good game today, and blows a bit hot and cold, but if I was someone with a bit of T20 ability (Joe Cracknell) I'd be planning my escape route from Middlesex. From his point of view, if he wants to get noticed, he needs to be playing for a team capable of reaching finals day. The greater exposure could lead to a hundred contract and franchise opportunities around the world. Playing with better players makes you become a better player yourself. I don't see how he can learn and progress playing for us.

The first thing you have to do to get noticed is to be selected. I am not convinced that Joe Cracknell would yet get a regular place in many other county T20 teams? Most of them seem to have a young Cracknell-type hitter or two already and they generally seem to contribute a little more, though admittedly that's easier to do when the rest of the team is functioning well. However, if you consistently put up good performances in a poor T20 team you are going to be noticed anyway. As Nathan Sowter was in a team that was a long way short of great.

I would have said that playing against better players is more important to the learning process than playing with better players, though of course if you have to improve to even get in the team that kind of focuses the issues for you. That's an argument for trying to be in CC1 rather than CC2 but it has less traction for T20 as it's just a geographic split.

[Paul W]

I suspect the problem is higher than the players and coaches.

The real problem is in the boardroom.

And re playing in a successful team- It's taken longer for Stephen Eskinazi to get recognised and finally get a hundred deal than if he had been playing in a better side.

[adelaide]

I suspect the problem is higher than the players and coaches.

The real problem is in the boardroom.

And re playing in a successful team- It's taken longer for Stephen Eskinazi to get recognised and finally get a hundred deal than if he had been playing in a better side.

Fair point on Eski. I wonder tho9ugh whether the recruiters remembered the difficulties he had before the last couple of years batting down the order in T20. If a young Middlesex player without that baggage had put up Eski's numbers, I suspect he would have been snapped up PDQ.

[John Fitzgerald]

The problem is finance. We are broke and have less than £200K in the bank so survival is the priority now especially in CC D1. The idea of bringing in star players forT20 and sacking coaches is for the birds. I think the club needs to make a statement. Jono did refer to the financial position in his post match interview.

Its not an enjoying watch but needs must. If I had the money I would invest.

My ECB mole tells me that two of our players with Blundred contracts one being Cullen are having their salaries paid by ECB

[Paul W]

John- I don't think Blake Cullen has a hundred contract this year, although that could change as all franchises still have two wildcard picks to come.

The main concern must surely be that in February, as far as we were concerned there was no financial problem- as in we signed Maharaj. Then a couple of weeks later he gets injured- then the ECB takes an interest in our figures, and all of a sudden we have no money for an overseas.

That must be really demoralising for the players to know we can't afford a second overseas. We might even end up having to let one or two players go that we would under normal circumstances have wanted to keep.

We should be cutting back on any 'nice to have, but not essential' expenses before we cut back on the playing budget.

The half empty Lord's for the Surrey game must have sent shivers down the spines of our finance department.

This isn't the first time our CEO has informed a cricket club the finances are in good health (forecasting a 600k profit for Somerset, which turned out to be 'break even' for the year), so maybe he is an optimist who goes for the best possible forecast, then we end up in difficulties when that forecast isn't achieved.