What a satisfying game. I wish I’d had the money and the desire to thread my way through to the Rose Bowl for a thoroughly entertaining match.

Hampshire’s 286-4, with KP contributing 62, seemed a tall order and one frankly I thought we’d not manage. But manage it we did, thanks to 79 from De Bruyn and a sublime knock of 112* from James Hildreth.

Somerset are now top having won two and had one game rained off in the South West division of the Friends Provident Trophy.

* Meanwhile, as the bigwigs of the county game meet to discuss the idea of an English EPL, there’s clear division on the makeup of any future tournament. Predictably, the fault line seems to be counties with Test grounds against those without. Though it’s not as simple as that. Some are happy to plump for city-based franchises but others such as Somerset’s Richard Gould are firmly opposed:

“We are hugely against regionalising – that would lead, eventually, to the domestic game being reduced to eight regional franchises for all forms of the game,” he said.

Good for you Richard… city-based franchises won’t work…and it would start a precedent leading to the extinction of the county game. Never….