Stephen Eskinazi 91* gets Middlesex back to winning ways despite Glamorgan recovery

Stephen Eskinazi maintained his rich vein of form with an unbeaten 91 from 56 balls as Middlesex halted their four-match Vitality Blast losing streak with a seven-wicket victory over Glamorgan at Radlett.

Eskinazi, who had scored 102 not out and 64 in his two previous innings, dominated the Glamorgan bowling to steer the Seaxes to their target of 171 with 14 balls to spare. His efforts outshone a Glamorgan record seventh-wicket stand of 88 from 47 balls between Dan Douthwaite and James Weighell, who both recorded maiden Blast half-centuries to lift their side to 170 for 8.

Glamorgan were hampered by the loss of their two leading run-scorers in the tournament - Nick Selman, who tested positive for Covid-19 and Marnus Labuschagne, isolating after being in contact with the opener.

Despite that, the visitors opted to bat, but spinner Mujeeb Ur Rahman, back at Middlesex for the remainder of the Blast, made an immediate impact - bowling three tight Powerplay overs and removing the dangerous Colin Ingram for a duck to finish with 1 for 23.

Glamorgan's reshuffled top order floundered, with only David Lloyd, who hit 29 from 25 balls, threatening to gain momentum before he fell to Steven Finn's sharply-taken return catch. But, having slumped to 76 for 6, the visitors were revived by the partnership between Douthwaite and Weighell - the latter in particular striking his shots cleanly but also with power and accuracy.

The pair took 23 from Finn's final over, including two sixes from Douthwaite, who was then dropped by Eskinazi off a skier and took advantage to bring up his half-century with another maximum off Daryl Mitchell. Douthwaite holed out next delivery for 53, with Eskinazi taking the catch this time, and Weighell reached 51 before following suit from the final ball of the innings as Mitchell ended with figures of 3 for 37.

Eskinazi immediately settled into his groove when Middlesex began their reply, dominating an opening stand of 55 with Joe Cracknell as he struck both Weighell and Prem Sisodiya for successive boundaries. Douthwaite made the breakthrough at the end of the fifth over, having Cracknell caught behind off a thick edge, but Nick Gubbins proved to be an equally capable foil for Eskinazi as the duo added 68 from 52 balls.

Gubbins eventually swept Sisodiya to deep square leg, but Mitchell bludgeoned 32 from just 13 balls before John Simpson sealed a rare Middlesex success, clipping his first delivery from Douthwaite for six.