The team played against visitors from Nottinghamshire at Lords, reports Mark Caswell

Credit Yogendra Singh via Unsplash

Middlesex have won their first game of the season, thanks mainly to a generous declaration and their batsman finally finding some form.

Much fancied visitors Nottinghamshire arrived at Lords and to the surprise of many were put into bat. A score of 374 was indebted to England internationals Ben Duckett 177 and Haseem Hamed 55; recalled Ethan Bamber took the bowling honours with 4-89.

Notts had batted in good conditions as the rain forecast on days two and four came along and the Middlesex first innings score of 274 Mark Stoneman 76 and 53 from the consistent Ryan Higgins kept Middlesex in the game, as Notts ended up on day three with a lead of 248, with four wickets remaining.

Rain interrupted the start on day four and there was no play before lunch. A surprise declaration (on a Stokes/McCullum  scale) by Notts 249 in 40 overs on a good Lords wicket saw Middlesex batsman finally find some form. First 50s of the season for out-of-form Pieter Malan and Max Holden and Stoneman 43 saw Middlesex home with 6 balls to spare. It doesn’t happen too often as Stuart Broad going for 7 an over with figures of 3 – 83.

The reason for this shock declaration could have been the poor form of the home teams batsman, and maybe the draw points reduction from 8 pts to 5pts.

Following a disappointing defeat at Northampton by seven wickets, Middlesex top order batting again failed being 36-five, in response to Northants: 198ao were rescued by the consistent John Simpson 32 and Ryan Higgins 70, in a reply of 149ao, another batting collapse led to the home team requiring 119 to win which they did with no alarms.

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