Match Preview: Somerset v Hampshire - LV= County Championship

Hampshire will be chasing a third consecutive LV= County Championship victory when they face Somerset in the four-day fixture beginning on Wednesday.

After a resounding seven-wicket win over Durham in their last fixture, James Vince’s side have just three games remaining as the 2015 campaign nears its conclusion. He will be hoping his side can produce a similar performance to see them leapfrog their opponents and move out of Division One’s bottom two positions.

Hampshire Squad:

Hampshire have announced a 13-man squad for the LV= County Championship fixture.

Fidel Edwards features once again despite picking up a minor hamstring injury against Durham whilst Mason Crane and James Tomlinson are included in addition to the previous final eleven.

The Opposition:

After an uneven start to the 2015 LV= County Championship campaign, Somerset have struggled to gain positive results in recent weeks after falling to win any of their last five four-day fixtures.

Marcus Trescothick’s side suffered a difficult innings-defeat at the hands of Division One leaders Yorkshire in their last fixture and they sit just five points above the relegation places with three matches remaining in the competition this season.

Did You Know?

• Hampshire are unbeaten in their last nine away fixtures against Somerset.
• Hampshire are unbeaten in the last 11 away fixtures between the two sides, when the match has begun on a Wednesday.  
• Jimmy Adams scored a superb 207 the last time Hampshire faced Somerset at Taunton whilst Michael Carberry also hit an excellent 182 as the visitors romped to an innings-victory. 

Full Hampshire Squad:

Michael Carberry, Jimmy Adams, James Vince, Will Smith, Sean Ervine, Adam Wheater, Liam Dawson, Gareth Berg, Mason Crane, Fidel Edwards, James Tomlinson, Ryan Stevenson, Ryan McLaren.

What The Team Say:

Hampshire First-Team Coach Dale Benkenstein: ‘I’m a lot happier with the way we’re playing now – we’ve had our ups and downs in this format but we’ve played to our potential in the last two matches which is pleasing. Every game is going to be pretty tough but this is a massive game and it will really make it easier if we can do well.’

‘If we get that win (at Taunton) it gives us a bit of breathing space and there will be opportunities in this game and the next two after that to do that and get ahead of the game - hopefully we can continue to take confidence from the last two games.’

Coverage:

Live text commentary will be available via the Hampshire Cricket Twitter and Facebook pages. A feed to these will also be available on this page.

There will be ball-by-ball commentary available on BBC Radio Solent online at bbc.co.uk.

Weather Forecast:

Please click here to view the latest weather forecast for Taunton.