MASON Crane may have the chance to help Hampshire get the perfect result ahead of their penultimate T20 Blast group clash against Sussex, his home county.

The leg-spin prodigy has kept his place in Hampshire’s squad for this afternoon’s match against Gloucestershire at Cheltenham College (2.30pm), following his impressive debut against Surrey on Friday night.

Crane, 18, claimed the scalps of Kumar Sangakkara and Vikram Solanki in taking 2-35 as Surrey were beaten at the Ageas Bowl.

It came on the back of match-winning 5-41 against Sussex in in the Second Eleven Championship.

Now he is likely to play a key role in the remainder of Hampshire’s T20 Blast group campaign - which concludes at home to Somerset next Thursday. Hampshire need to win all of them to be sure of a place in the quarter-finals but it is the Friday night trip to Hove that Shoreham-born Crane will be relishing most of all, having left Sussex for The Ageas Bowl as a 14 year-old.

Like Saints academy graduate Harrison Reed, he comes from Worthing and came to Hampshire’s attention via the county’s former left-arm spinner Raj Maru, his coach at Lancing College.

“Mason had the option to come to us or stay at Sussex and he chose us,” explained Hampshire academy director Bobby Parks. “Good players take their opportunities and Mason’s done that. Sussex probably hoped he would stay but at the time they had a lot of spinners and he wasn’t quite in the mix. We just opened the door and it was up to him.”

Crane has credited Maru and Hampshire academy spin coach Darren Flint for playing key roles in his development.

“They work really well together and have been a good team,” continued Parks. “Flinty’s helped Mason get into a groove with his bowling. And Raj has been good for him as well.”

Parks continued: “There’s a fair number of leg spinners out there but not many as good as Mason.

“He’s a proper wrist spinner, he gives the ball brilliant revs and has good variations.

“We’re bringing a lot of different types of players through now; leg-spinners, off-spinners, keepers and batters.

“It’s really exciting to have that variation, certainly with Mason.”

Hampshire (from): Carberry, Vince, Wheater, Adams, Shah, Gatting, Smith, Terry, Berg, Wood, Arafat, Crane, Briggs, Bird.