The bottom team in the group thus beat the top side and Derbyshire, a better side than Middlesex, most hope to turn things on their head similarly tomorrow.

A sign of the respective depths of each side is that Lancashire have announced the following 16, which doesn’t include Bohannon, Balderson, Lamb, Jennings and Mahmood:

Livingstone, Bailey, Bell, Blatherwick, Buttler, Croft, de Grandhomme, Gleeson, Hartley, Jones, Mitchell, Parkinson, Salt, Vilas, Wells, Wood

Derbyshire are likely to be unchanged the side that one the last two games so convincingly.

Came, Reece, Ali, du Plooy, Madsen, Guest, McKiernan, Chappell, Thomson, Scrimshaw, Khan

Old Trafford is a tough place to go and win, but we acquitted ourselves pretty well against Lancashire in the tournament opener, without playing anywhere near our best.

Logic suggests a win for the red rose county, but if Derbyshire turn up and play at their best, they have the talent to turn this game on its head.

My head says it will be a game too far and we will regret losing the home game to Northamptonshire and dropping the point at Durham.

But who knows?