Nick Gubbins, Dawid Malan and Eoin Morgan in runs for Middlesex

Middlesex 356 for 6 (Gubbins 99, Malan 76, Morgan 76) v Gloucestershire
Scorecard

Middlesex's England stars of present and possibly near future dominated day one of their Specsavers County Championship match with Gloucestershire at Lord's.

Nick Gubbins, touted as an opener for England's first Test of the summer against Pakistan later this month, gave a wonderful audition for the role, before falling one short of a deserved century. Skipper Dawid Malan, a current red-ball incumbent for the national side, and England's white-ball captain Eoin Morgan weighed in with 76 apiece - the latter in his first County Championship appearance in almost three years.

The persevering Daniel Worrall was Gloucester's standout bowler with 3 for 59, as Middlesex passed 300 in the first innings for the first time in 13 matches.

Gubbins wasted no time making Gloucestershire regret their decision to forego the toss and bowl. He survived a couple of early scares, the first when wicketkeeper Gareth Roderick dropped him down the leg side off the bowling of Worrall when on just 17. The second shortly after saw him almost run out by a direct hit from Graham van Buuren, the ball ricocheting to the boundary for a rare 5.

Gubbins' cover-drives were a joy to behold and the opener was also quick to savagely cut anything short and wide. Sam Robson, perhaps fortunate to retain his place at the expense of Max Holden, by contrast looked edgy early on but found some batting rhythm particularly with some punchy drives through midwicket.

The pair added 77 before the excellent Worrall squared up Robson who edged a low catch to Roderick. Gubbins though carried on unperturbed, hitting 10 boundaries in reaching 50 off 73 balls.

Stevie Eskinazi proved a good foil either side of lunch before playing a poor shot to a wide one from Worrall, which Kieran Noema-Barnett palmed upwards before claiming at the second attempt.

It was the beginning of an excellent spell from Australian quick Worrall who ended Gubbins' hopes of back-to-back Championship centuries when the left-hander gloved a rising delivery to give Roderick a second catch behind the stumps.

Sadly, for the visitors, none of Worrall's team-mates found the same life or bowled with the same control, meaning Malan and Morgan wrestled back the initiative with a century stand. Malan, buoyed by last week's century against Sussex, was the early aggressor with some stylish off drives, but Morgan caught the mood, hoisting van Buuren for a straight six.

Such was the duo's dominance it was a shock when Malan fell to the second new ball, trapped lbw by Matthew Taylor to a delivery which pitched and rolled along the floor - surely ominous for Gloucestershire whose earlier decision to bowl means they must bat last.

Taylor soon struck again when new batsman Hilton Cartwright wafted a catch to slip and departed without scoring, and Morgan fell lbw just before the close to another ball which kept low from former Middlesex allrounder Ryan Higgins.