MAX Holden stole the limelight from Lhuan-dre Pretorius’s exhilarating debut as Hampshire Hawks and Middlesex tied a DLS thriller in the Men’s Vitality Blast.

South African Pretorius hammered a 22-ball 44 as Hawks struck 63 on either side of the rain delays.

Middlesex needed 76 to win after DLS recalculated the score, and after Chris Wood began with a maiden, Hawks were heavy favourites.

But Holden whacked 38 in 18, before Kane Williamson’s 23 and Ben Geddes’ 10 took Middlesex to the brink, but both sides had to share two points. It was Hampshire’s eighth T20 tie, and Middlesex’s third.

"It was amazing, it is a good start for me. This is an amazing group, one of the best I've played with, and I'm enjoying my time here," said Pretorius.

"I'm a bit sleep deprived, but you have to be flexible as cricketers. It is an honour to be here, so I have to make it work.

"I love cricket so I wouldn't change it for anything; I could be sitting in a classroom or working 9-5. I'm not going to complain at all.

"It is not nice to tie a game, but that is part of cricket. It could have gone both ways. A tie is better than a loss. I missed out on a couple of balls, but I felt like I was hitting it nicely."

Pretorius arrived in the UK on Thursday after finishing an unofficial Test for South Africa A in Saint Lucia the day before.

Despite the travel, he showed no signs of jet lag, smashing a front-foot pull for four off the first ball of the match after Middlesex opted to bowl.

He added two more boundaries with a flick off the pads and a crisp cover drive. Pretorius continued his aggressive start, racing to 29 off 14 balls, though James Vince fell at cover.

Rain interrupted after four overs, causing a two-hour and 20-minute delay. A six-over-a-side game finally resumed, and Pretorius reignited, blasting 44 not out off 22 balls, including a towering six over midwicket.

With Toby Albert rotating strike, Hampshire reached 63 for one. DLS set a 76-run target. Chris Wood opened with a maiden, and James Fuller conceded only two leg byes.

Middlesex finally accelerated as Max Holden edged and then struck four boundaries in a row to take 19 off the second over. Another 18 runs followed, but Holden fell for 38 off 18.

A six from Kane Williamson levelled the DLS par. With 13 needed from the final over, Scott Currie held his nerve.

After a dropped catch, two twos, and a four from Ben Geddes, a scrambled bye off the final ball to the keeper meant the scores were tied.