Under-fire Middlesex hope outside criticism can 'fuel' promotion push

Toby Roland-Jones and Sam Robson among senior players looking to steer "most talented squad" of recent times

Vithushan Ehantharajah

Published: Apr 2, 2026, 3:18 PM (2 hrs ago)

It speaks to where Middlesex are right now that being in possession of their 2026 whites in time for Friday's men's County Championship opener feels like a relief.

"Unforeseen circumstances" around the delivery of this year's limited-overs kits saw the county cancel a photocall originally planned for Wednesday's media day. What is usually a day of colours, outfit changes and jovial poses was instead a monochrome afternoon contained within the Lord's press box.

With that came ample free time to ruminate over the open letter from a host of Middlesex club legends that was released 24 hours earlier, calling for regime change. Co-signed by Mike Gatting, Desmond Haynes, Mike Selvey, John Emburey, Mark Ramprakash and Clive Radley, the letter is intended to be a rallying cry to Middlesex members, encouraging them to turn out in force at the county's annual general meeting on April 15 and push for board resignations.

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Administrative county coups are in vogue, with Middlesex the third crisis club, after Sussex and Lancashire, to have former players mobilising against sitting executives. Naturally, some are wondering if they are simply jumping on a trend. But there are plenty of reasons to rally.

Middlesex are being sued by former chief executive Richard Goatley, while the current one, Andrew Cornish, is suspended (on full pay) amid a Cricket Regulator investigation. Up until the end of last October, they were subject to two years of "special measures" by the ECB for financial mismanagement.

However, one part of the letter hung over the media rounds: the suggestion that other teams look upon Middlesex's men's first team as "a soft touch" and "lacking fight".

A handful of the current crop have bristled at the intimation, and the timing of the letter's release. On Friday, they welcome Gloucestershire at Lord's for the start of their third consecutive promotion push.

"It's a bit of a challenge because you've got to take into account people who might be affected by it," Peter Fulton, Middlesex's new head coach, says when asked if there was a need to insulate his players from the storm. The 47-year-old former New Zealand Test batter arrived in mid-March from Canterbury, his former team securing the Plunkett Shield just a few hours before the open letter dropped.

"In any team, there are some guys who are going to follow that stuff more than not and read into stuff. We've definitely got some guys in this team who are probably oblivious to it."

One of those who is across matters is Toby Roland-Jones. This September will mark a decade since the 38-year-old inspired Middlesex to the last of their 11 County Championship titles, sealed with a hat-trick in a final-round showdown against Yorkshire at Lord's. A club legend now back in the pack after relinquishing the captaincy to Leus du Plooy midway through last season, he is dismayed by what he regards as an unfair drive-by of the current playing group.

"I think it gives us a real obvious impetus and incentive to narrow the focus in on the cricket. Those outside things have a place, but certainly can't affect us in the dressing room. Hopefully, if anything, it's used as an added self-impetus or fuel to drive people on"

Toby Roland-Jones on claims Middlesex "lack fight"

"On the one hand it feels a little bit disappointing," Roland-Jones says. "And [it is] a shame anytime there's some negativity coming from... I guess it's not within the club, but from connections to the club.

"These guys firstly do care about the club, and they've obviously got their own thoughts and that's perfectly okay and they're entitled to that. But I guess, in certain ways, they also don't have a huge access to what's going on, certainly within the changing room walls."

Middlesex have done very little in limited-overs cricket recently, but can argue they have been the most-consistent side during their time in Division Two. Something they acknowledge is not exactly a compliment but certainly speaks to fighting qualities.

Following relegation in 2023, they finished within 11 points of promotion in 2024 (third) and again in 2025 (fourth). Across those seasons, they won 10 of 28 matches. And the folly of that statistic is contained in the fact that during the same period, Leicestershire (eight wins) and Glamorgan (seven), have the next-best records. Seven and five, respectively, came last season, earning them promotion at Middlesex's expense.

"At times we played some of the best cricket across this division, across the two years," Roland-Jones says. "But it's the sustaining element that maybe has just let us down.

"I always think the difference is that it is often about wins in Division Two and not losing in Division One to stay up. We've got to be prepared to put our aims out there as attacking the top of this division. If we fall short again, then we accept that that's our shortcomings. But I see no reason why this squad shouldn't feel there's room for us to take it on."

That sentiment is shared by senior batter Sam Robson - another 2016 winner, now 36 and in his 19th full season with Middlesex.

"Time will tell, but I feel like we're in a pretty good place," he says. "We've not been a million miles off."

"There's obviously been a lot going on here for quite a few years. It feels like there have been constant off-field matters or incidents that have come up. At times it has been distracting, but generally our actual squad of players have been pretty good at getting on with it and cracking on."

The hunt for an overseas player is ongoing, after Victoria quick Sam Elliott picked up a hamstring issue in the Sheffield Shield final. That their reported new target, South Africa's Eathan Bosch - the lesser-known Bosch brother - is nursing a similar injury hints at the tight financial margins Middlesex are working within.

"I was very lucky at the start of my career; Chris Rogers we had for numerous years, Adam Voges, George Bailey," Robson says. "We were blessed to be able to have high-quality Test players at our disposal and that helped us enormously. Not having that the last few years has definitely been a challenge and at times frustrating, there's no doubt about that.

"You can talk about spirit and all that stuff, but fundamentally in cricket, you need bloody good players to win. We saw, for example, with Shaheen Afridi a few years ago - we had him the year we got promoted in 2022. He played three matches [taking 14 wickets], we won all three, and we just went up [with six wins, nine points ahead of third-place Glamorgan]."

Robson is willing to take on the shepherding role overseas players tend to adopt: "The guidance that I was given early on in my career, I want to try and repay that to these younger blokes." Encouragingly, he and Roland-Jones have noticed a shift in the profile of the squad over the winter.

An impressive Under-19 World Cup for batter Caleb Falconer (aged 19) and quick Seb Morgan (18), along with the progression of young seamer Naavya Sharma adds an exciting slant on the squad's depth - particularly in the bowling department - supplementing an established core.

"I think it's the most talented squad we've had in a while," Robson says. "We've got some senior players, like Toby and myself, and then we've got Max Holden, Ben Geddes, Ryan Higgins who are coming to that stage of their careers where they've played enough to be consistently good. Leus du Plooy is also one of the leading players in domestic cricket, and as captain he's keen, hungry and determined to win. It bodes well."

The noise will not quieten around Middlesex. Amid the conclusion of various cases is the ongoing exploration into demutualization, in order to secure private investment. More immediately, there is the prospect of an explosive AGM in a couple of weeks.

The lack of success on the field is indelibly linked to issues off it. Yet Middlesex returning to Division One will not cure them. And it will be a trickier challenge with Durham back in Division Two and the likes of Lancashire and Kent refocusing after poor seasons.

But amid the expectation of an evolving squad is the extra motivation. Either ignore the barbs of being "a soft touch" and "lacking fight" or pin them up in your corner of the dressing room.

"I think it gives us a real obvious impetus and incentive to just kind of narrow the focus in on the cricket," Roland-Jones says of those criticisms. "Those outside things have a place wherever they have a place, but certainly can't affect us in the dressing room, you know?

"Hopefully, if anything, it's used as an added self-impetus or fuel to drive people on."

Vithushan Ehantharajah is an associate editor at ESPNcricinfo

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