Middlesex Women are back on the road tomorrow, travelling to Hove to face Sussex Sharks at The 1st Central County Ground in their penultimate group-stage clash of the Metro Bank One-Day Cup.
Head Coach, Marc Broom, has named a squad of 13 for the occasion, featuring six changes from last week’s victory over Leicestershire Foxes. Olivia Kibler will take the gloves, returning alongside Anaya Patel, Sonali Patel, Issy Routledge and Lauren Turner, while Mia Rogers, the former Sunriser, also joins us on loan from Durham.
Middlesex will head into the game full of confidence after last weekend’s 123-run victory away to Leicestershire. Captain Saskia Horley and loanee Ariana Dowse shared a superb 185-run stand that set up Middlesex’s 295/4, with Horley making a career-best List A score of 114, well supported by Dowse’s 92. With the ball, patience was required before the breakthrough came in the 17th over, courtesy of Anisha Dissanayake, who went on to dismiss both openers. From there, wickets tumbled, and Sarah Pearson stole the show, claiming her maiden five-wicket haul before sealing the win with career-best figures of 6/23, which remains the best return in the Tier Two competition so far.
That result ensured Middlesex’s place in the semi-finals and extended their perfect record in the competition to seven wins from seven. We currently sit atop the table, four points clear of Northamptonshire Steelbacks, with Glamorgan third and Yorkshire fourth. Middlesex have already beaten all three sides this season, and if we remain top after the group stage, we will face the fourth-placed team in the semi-final on Saturday 6th September.
Sussex, meanwhile, remain in contention for a top-four finish, provided they win their remaining two matches and other results go their way. They currently sit sixth in the standings with three wins from seven, most recently falling to Northamptonshire by 57 runs despite an outstanding 5/18 from Ava Lee. In their latest victory, against Leicestershire, Izzy Collis top-scored with 55 and Lee took three wickets, while Mollie Adams also sits among the top ten leading run-scorers in Tier Two.
Middlesex and Sussex have already met twice this season in the Vitality Blast. Middlesex triumphed on both occasions – by eight wickets at Lord’s after chasing down 102/7, and in a much tighter contest in Hove, where a strong team effort in the field secured a 15-run victory despite Sussex’s valiant chase.
MIDDLESEX SQUAD V SUSSEX SHARKS
Play is scheduled to begin at 10:30am in Hove. You can follow live updates throughout the day via our social media channels and the Match Centre on the website.
Here’s to another great performance on the road, before returning to Merchant Taylors’ next weekend!
Sussex Sharks Women
Middlesex Women
