Middlesex's Interim First Team Coach, Dane Vilas, has named a squad of 13 for the first of our final two matches of the 2025 season, when we head northbound to the Emirates Old Trafford to take on Lancashire.
The game realistically has to be seen as a must win encounter for Middlesex if we are to finish in the top two in the Division Two table, with Glamorgan currently sitting 30 points ahead, and Derbyshire three points ahead of us with just two games remaining - with the two sides directly above us in the table going head-to-head in this week's round of fixtures.
The frustration of the weather at Lord's last week deprived both us and Derbyshire of the opportunity to close the gap on Glamorgan, when after two evenly matched days, heavy rain showers interrupted the final two days and killed off any chance of a result in the game, with both sides having no option but to settle for a draw.
We can only hope for better from the weather gods up in Manchester this week, as we'll need to come away with a big points scoring win, and hope that Glamorgan slip up against Derbyshire.
Both Kane Williamson and Max Holden again miss out on inclusion in the squad this week, with both players still not fit to play, although the Club expects Williamson to be ready to return for the final clash of the season at Lord's against Gloucestershire next week.
Also missing out on being named in the squad is loanee Olly Stone, who at the request of his parent Club, Nottinghamshire, will travel to the Oval to join up with his Nottinghamshire teammates, as they retain the right to recall him from his short-term loan should he be required to play by them. Nottinghamshire will make a decision on whether Stone is needed, and if not, he will travel immediately to Manchester and be available to play for Middlesex against Lancashire.
Whilst the exact nature of the domestic County Championship structure remains uncertain for next season at this stage and with Leicestershire already guaranteed to finish in the top two, all Middlesex, Derbyshire and Glamorgan can do is target a second place finish in Division Two and be in the mix for Division One cricket next season.
This week's opponents Lancashire come into the game without a win in their last two games, after drawing with Kent last time out, and losing to Glamorgan the game before that, and whilst mathematically not impossible, the 41 point gap between them and Glamorgan in second place realistically sees them out of the promotion race.
Middlesex on the other hand have everything to play for, and two wins and two draws from our last four red-ball encounters sees us heading into the game with high hopes of continuing that form and pushing on to close the gap on Glamorgan. We have to target two big wins and hope that Glamorgan come unstuck and Derbyshire are unable to match our points haul from the last two matches.
The Division Two table currently stands as follows:
| Position | Team | Played | Won | Lost | Drawn | Bat Bonus | Bowl Bonus | Points |
| 1 | Leicestershire | 12 | 6 | 1 | 5 | 37 | 32 | 205 |
| 2 | Glamorgan | 12 | 5 | 2 | 5 | 30 | 31 | 180 |
| 3 | Derbyshire | 12 | 2 | 2 | 8 | 27 | 30 | 153 |
| 4 | Middlesex | 12 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 22 | 32 | 150 |
| 5 | Gloucestershire | 12 | 1 | 3 | 8 | 34 | 32 | 146 |
| 6 | Lancashire | 12 | 2 | 3 | 7 | 20 | 31 | 139 |
| 7 | Northamptonshire | 12 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 27 | 30 | 137 |
| 8 | Kent | 12 | 2 | 5 | 5 | 17 | 28 | 109 |
Marcus Harris has been Lancashire's best-performing batter this season, having gone past 1,000 first-class runs for the season, with a tally of 1,027 runs at an average of 60.41. He's followed by Luke Wells on 915 runs at 41.59, Keaton Jennings on 897 runs at 40.77, and Josh Bohannon on 745 runs at 35.47.
With the ball its seamer George Balderson who has delivered the best results, with the right-armer currently leading the way on 33 wickets, with the left-arm spin of Tom Hartley also doing damage, with 29 wickets to date. Tom Bailey's 25 wickets have him next, with the right-arm spin of Chris Green accounting for 23 opposition wickets.
The last time the two sides met was in the return fixture at Lord's in the opening game of the season, which ended in a draw, with both sides chasing victory on the final day of the match. Middlesex ended two wickets short of their target, with Lancashire's second innings closing on 262 for 8, which left the visitors 47 runs short of the target of 309 they needed for victory when play came to end at a little after 7pm on day four.
Middlesex will be hoping to bag the first of what would be two crucial wins to end the season, and hope that Glamorgan don't come out on top against Derbyshire this week, to ensure that Vilas' men can return to Lord's next week with everything to play for against Gloucestershire.
It promises to be a nail-biting four days ahead!
The Middlesex 13-man squad for this week's clash against Lancashire is as follows:
Lancashire Men
Middlesex Men
