Who are the key players? How did they do last year? Where are they strong? Where might they be weak? Key questions answered ahead of the new T20 Blast campaign
First team manager: Adi Burrell
Captain: James Vince
Last season: Sixth in North Group
How did they do last year?
It was a miserable year in the T20 Blast for Hampshire.
The south coast side won just two matches in the group stages, and were frequently subjected to heavy defeats after batting first.
Only one of Hampshire's batsmen made 200 runs in the tournament - and that was allrounder James Fuller, while no one reached double figures in wickets. Mason Crane was the leading player in that respect with nine.
Mason Crane will play an important part for Hampshire Hawks
Who are their key players?
Some of the batting load has been lightened on captain James Vince by the arrival of D'Arcy Short, the Australian.
Short has plenty of experience in high-level T20, with both the Aussie national side and Hobart Hurricanes in the Big Bash, and offers an option with the ball in addition to hitting power and precision at the top of the order.
Potentially more influential, however, will be Colin de Grandhomme - the New Zealand allrounder - who joins after his side's involvement in the World Test Championship final.
De Grandhomme knows the Blast, having previously had stints with Birmingham Bears. De Grandhomme, mullet and all, strikes at 161.20 with the bat across a T20 career spanning some 180 innings, and can also boast a wicket every four overs bowled with his right-arm medium in the format.
Then there's Vince. A more casually brilliant batsman you will not find in this competition, and despite all the usual jokes about nicking off for 20-odd he has increasing experience in the biggest tournaments on the planet - thanks to stints in the Big Bash with Sydney Sixers and in the PSL with Multan Sultans.
Keep an eye out, too, for the impact of Crane, who enjoyed an excellent all-format 2020. Crane, let's not forget, debuted for England as a T20 player in 2017. He is adding mid-overs strangling skills to a strike bowler repetoire and with another good season might just interest Chris Silverwood, the national head coach.
What are their biggest strengths?
The spin department at Hampshire is strong. Liam Dawson returns after missing the 2020 Blast because of a horror injury sustained during the first Bob Willis Trophy match of last season against Middlesex at Radlett, and could enter into a useful partnership with Crane.
With Short also available - and Ian Holland, if selected - do not be surprised to see a large chunk of Hampshire overs being bowled by spinners, especially at the relatively expansive Ageas Bowl.
Where might they have a weakness?
Last year, Hampshire really struggled to defend a target, big or small. Over the course of the campaign, they lost by nine wickets twice (albeit once as a result of DLS), and by eight, seven and six wickets on one occasion each.
That's a problem that needs rectifying for 2020, but there is not a great deal in the bowling department which suggests things will change markedly. De Grandhomme strikes regularly but can be expensive, and they are not the force they are in first-class cricket - where Kyle Abbott and Mohammad Abbas were an intimidating presence in the early weeks of the campaign.
No more Rilee Roussow, no longer eligible as a Kolpak and not part of the Hampshire squad, is also a miss in the middle order, which looks a little fragile. Short and the returning Vince, away for much of 2020 with England, will add some bulk, but is it enough?
The absence of home advantage for the first seven games of the season, owing to the World Test Championship being played at the Ageas, might have a bearing on their chances. Having to play a first-team double-header against two different teams on the same day - as is the case on July 16 when both Essex and Sussex visit Southampton - is hardly ideal for a pro outfit.
What are their chances of reaching Finals Day?
They may spring a surprise, but Hampshire are up against it to make the knockout stages in 2021.
Possible XI: D'Arcy Short, James Vince, Tom Alsop, Sam Northeast, Joe Weatherley, Liam Dawson, Colin de Grandhomme/Kyle Abbott, Lewis McManus, James Fuller, Chris Wood, Mason Crane
Fixtures: June 9 - Kent (a); June 11 - Essex (a); June 12 - Sussex (a); June 15 - Middlesex (a); June 18 - Surrey (a); June 20 - Gloucestershire (a); June 25 - Somerset (a); June 28 - Middlesex (h); June 30 - Surrey (h); July 2 - Gloucestershire (h); July 9 - Somerset (h); July 16 - Essex (h), Sussex (h); July 18 - Glamorgan (h)
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