Surrey and Middlesex to meet in Bob Willis Trophy opener at the Oval

Surrey and Middlesex will meet next Saturday at the Kia Oval in the first round of the new four-day competition The Bob Willis Trophy.

The two London counties have not met in first-class cricket for two seasons after Middlesex were relegated to Division Two in 2017. But with the BWT being structured by region, both are in the six-strong South Group.

Each team will play five fixtures in August and September, before a five-day final in early October. There will be some special playing conditions in place, such as 90 overs per day, a new ball after 90 overs, and first innings being capped at 120 overs.

Middlesex will play their two home games at Radlett, with Lord’s unavailable. Surrey have three home games, against Middlesex, Kent and Sussex.

While fans will not be able to attend games at this stage, counties are rolling out enhanced streaming services in addition to the usual BBC commentaries.

There will be 1,000 fans at each day of Surrey and Middlesex’s two-day friendly at the Oval from Sunday, as it is one of the government’s pilot schemes for the return of sport.

The ECB have also announced a special edition women’s domestic 50-over competition will be staged this summer, featuring the eight new teams in the women’s elite domestic structure.