Rain forced the abandonment of Hampshire v Essex at the Ageas Bowl

Hampshire’s FriendsLife t20 South Group match with Essex was washed out without a ball being bowled at the Ageas Bowl.

Pools of water on the outfield after overnight rain and more showers on Sunday morning made for difficult mopping-up operations for groundsman Nigel Gray.

Umpires made three inspections before calling off the match soon after 5pm just when it looked as if a five-over-per-side match might still be played.

With both sides being awarded one point each that was enough to take the home side through to the quarter-finals and Essex progressed by virtue of picking up more points than Durham.