THE MCC have named their team to face county champions Durham in the 2010 season curtain-raiser in Abu Dhabi at the end of March.

Gloucestershire captain Alex Gidman has been asked to skipper a side that includes a mixture of youth and experience, with 40-year-old former England batsman Mark Ramprakash alongside highly-rated trio Steven Finn, Dawid Malan and James Taylor.

The match, the first of its kind to be played away from Lord’s, will also serve as a first-class trial for matches under floodlights using pink balls.

Finn and Malan are joined by a third Middlesex representative in the side, with opener Scott Newman also selected.

Gidman said: “I was delighted to be invited to play in this match, and to be asked to captain is a huge privilege. My family have strong ties with MCC, and both myself and my brother Will spent time as MCC Young Cricketers, so I cannot wait to lead out the MCC team in such an historic fixture.

“Using pink balls under lights in a four-day, first-class match promises to be a very interesting experiment and certainly something that every player will be looking forward to being a part of.”