Royal visit for England match

HRH The Duke of Edinburgh will attend The Rose Bowl

His Royal Highness The Duke of Edinburgh will attend the NatWest One Day 50 Over Game between England and Hampshire on Saturday.

On arrival at The Rose Bowl, his Royal Highness will be received by Captain Christopher Fagan, Deputy Lieutenant of Hampshire, before being escorted to the Main Pavilion.

Councillor John West, chairman of Hampshire County Council; Mrs Bridget West; Councillor Bernie Wright and Mrs Ruth Wright, Mayor and Mayoress of Eastleigh; Mr Colin Ingleby Mackenzie, president of Hampshire Cricket; Mrs Susan Ingleby Mackenzie; Mr Rod Bransgrove, chairman of Hampshire Cricket, and Mrs Mandy Bransgrove will be presented prior to His Royal Highness watching part of the 50-over match.

The visit is expected to last over two and a half hours during which His Royal Highness will also meet team captains, Michael Vaughan (England) and Shane Warne (Hampshire), the players and some of The Rose Bowl’s groundstaff who have been responsible for preparing the pitch.

His Royal Highness was invited to attend the England v Hampshire match from this season’s programme of fixtures. It is considered to be an excellent choice with prospects of some exciting play as it will be the first ‘showdown’ between Ashes rivals Vaughan and Warne.

England may also call upon Hampshire’s explosive batsman Kevin Pietersen, who will find himself in the unusual position of facing his home side and skipper.

The Rose Bowl is preparing to welcome a royal visitor

“We are extremely honoured that His Royal Highness has chosen to visit The Rose Bowl,” said Hampshire chairman Bransgrove.

“The Duke’s enthusiasm for cricket is well known and we hope that he will enjoy a memorable and exciting day’s play in this important show-piece match.”

The match is being used as a warm-up for the NatWest Series and the NatWest International Twenty20 between England and Australia at The Rose Bowl on Monday.