Sussex Rothesay County Championship Div 1 at Trent Bridge Win 21 pts

 

27/04

Day 3

HAMEED AND DUCKETT ROMP NOTTS TO VICTORY

AFTER ANOTHER FARHAN FOUR-FER

Notts sit on top of the championship table after thrashing Sussex by nine wickets at Trent Bridge today.

On a gloriously sunny day with clear blue skies, bowlers had to strive hard for wickets on a strip possessing much less terror than on the first two days. Despite the overnight score and the Wembley distractions a good sized crowd gathered and they witnessed a good two sessions of cricket.

It took Notts 30.2 overs of an extended morning session to take the last three Sussex wickets. Tongue (Pavilion End) and O’Neill opened up . The overnight pair Simpson and Carson played them relatively easily, the old ball not offering much bounce or movement. In the 71st over, Simpson pulled Tongue for six over long leg. Hutton replaced O’Neill for the 72nd over. A two for Carson off Tongue brought up the 50 partnership in 114 balls. Simpson reached 50 off 94 balls with a single off Hutton in the 74th over. Farhan and Patterson-White came on for the 75th and 76th overs respectively. The new ball was taken by Hutton and O’Neill with Sussex on 229 for 7 off 80 overs. Notts were hoping that the new ball would precipitate a rapid Sussex decline but this was not the case, both batsmen looking comfortable. Tongue replaced O’Neill for the 88th over. Carson (43 off 128 balls, 5x4) momentarily lost his concentration and drove Hutton straight to substitute McCann at short mid-wicket; 254 for 8 in the 89th over. It had taken Notts 95 minutes to make the crucial breakthrough. The 8^th wicket partnership had added 87 in 35 overs.

Hameed now spread his field when Simpson was facing and a few soft runs were accrued by the Sussex skipper. Farhan, having a wonderful game, came on for the 93rd over and removed Robinson (5) with his first delivery caught by Verreynne. Sussex 275 for 9 meaning lunch was delayed. At 13:11 top scorer Simpson (74 off 149 balls, 6x4, 1x6) was caught right on the mid-wicket ropes by Tongue off Farhan. Sussex  278 all out off 94.2 overs. Farhan with figures of  23.2-1-54-4. O’Neill (3-74) was the standout seamer. He departs Notts after his short 4 game stint as the leading championship wicket-taker (21 wickets @17.90), having made a strong impression not only with the ball but with the bat and in the field. He is a bundle of enthusiastic energy and hopefully will return to Notts in the future. A very popular figure amongst the team and members alike.

Notts needed 148 in 161 overs but got home in double quick time scoring their runs at 5.72 RPO on what was now an unresponsive pitch with clear blue skies overhead. Robinson (Radcliffe Road End) and Seales shared the new ball. Hameed hit Seales for two offside boundaries in the 2nd over, In the 4th over, Hameed hit Seales for a straight four and then a boundary through mid-wicket; Notts 26-0. In the 6th over, Hameed swept Carson's opening delivery to long leg. In the 11^th over, Hameed hit Carson for successive boundaries (straight and over mid-wicket). Notts 51-0. Seales changed ends for the 13^th over, Slater smashing his opening delivery of his new spell over the cover ropes for six. Next ball, Slater hit him to the square leg ropes. In his following over, Seales had Slater (21) caught on the square leg ropes by Carter; 67-1 in the 15th over. 

The in-coming Duckett hit Carson for a lofted boundary in the 16th over. Hudson-Prentice came on for the 17th over. Duckett destroyed off-spinner Carson in the 18^th over taking 18 runs off him. A four through mid-wicket was followed by a straight six. A dot ball followed. Duckett then hit the Ulsterman for four through square leg. Duckett swept the final ball of the over for four backward of square. The Notts 100 came up in the 19th over bowled by Hudson-Prentice. In the following over, Duckett paddled swept Carson for 6 into the Smith Cooper Stand and then hit him for four through extra cover; 12 off the over. In the 21st over, a quick single for Hameed off Hudson-Prentice saw him to his 50 off 71 balls. Duckett hit successive sixes to the short square leg boundary off Carson. The first just evading Hudson-Prentice on the ropes and then a single brought up his rapid 50 off 23 balls, another 15 off the over. In his next over Carson (10.5-0-86-0) went for another 9 runs, boundaries for Hameed and Duckett. In Carson’s next over, a quickly scampered cheeky single for Hameed taking advantage of a misfield by the bowler saw Notts (148-1 off 25.5 overs) home at 15:27. Hameed in superb form has scored 443 runs @110.75 this season and finished today on 62* off 91 balls (9x4). Duckett in what is likely to be his only appearance for Notts this season had scored 59* off 31 balls (6x4, 4x6). Notts who had won a key toss  had dominated Sussex for almost the whole contest and thoroughly deserved their 9 wicket triumph.MAG

 

26/04 Day 2

ADVANTAGE NOTTS

at the end of a to and fro day

Sussex lead by 64 runs with three second innings wickets still standing at the end of Day 2 after another day of fascinating cricket at Trent Bridge.

Robinson (Radcliffe Road End) bowled the opening over of the morning and conceded three including one no ball. Notts then collapsed dramatically losing 5 wickets for 43 as Seales and Robinson took full advantage of a helpful pitch and overhead conditions. Seales removed Haynes (35) with his first delivery of the day, the right hander feathering a catch to keeper Simpson, 167 for 4 in the 39th over. Verreynne cover drove Robinson for two fours in the 40th over. In the following over, Verreynne (9) was caught low down to his right by Coles at third slip off Seales, 186 for 5. In the 46th over, Hameed (85 off 122 balls, 12x4) was caught behind by Simpson near his right boot off Robinson, 198 for 6. A classy knock by the captain on a very difficult wicket. A four through mid-wicket by Patterson-White off Seales saw Notts passed 200 in the 47th over. O'Neill departed for a 3 ball duck caught by Clark near his right shoulder at second slip off Robinson, 202 for 7 in the 48th over. Hutton (4) hit Seales for four through point but fell in the same over, well caught low to his left by Clark at second slip, 210 for 8 after 49 overs. Notts with a lead of just 41. Tongue joined Patterson-White in the middle and swung the match back in Notts favour by adding 71 in 13 overs.

Tongue hit Seales for two boundaries in the 51st over to take the lead above 50. Robinson conceded 10 off the 52nd over including a pulled legside four by Patterson-White. Next over, a bouncer from Seales sailed over Simpson's head, five wides. Later in the same over Patterson-White straight drove Seales for four. Coles came on for the 54th over, Patterson-White lofting him for a four through extra cover. Hudson-Prentice bowled the 55th over and in the following over a single for Patterson-White saw Notts to 250. Patterson-White pulled Seales for four to bring up the 50 partnership in 61 balls. In the 61st over, Tongue straight drove Seales for four to bring up the 100 lead. Patterson-White pulled Seales for a six into the Smith Cooper Stand. Patterson-White (42 off 59 balls, 5x4, 1x6) was caught at second slip by Clark (his 4th catch of the innings) off Robinson, 280 for 9 in the 62nd over. With Notts nine wickets down lunch was delayed. Carson came on for the 67th over. A four through third man by Tongue off Robinson saw Notts to 300 in the 68th over. Next over, Farhan (9) lost his middle stump to Carson. Notts 300 all out off 68.3 overs at 13:23 with Tongue 39 not out (off 61 balls, 5x4). The Sussex bowling was dominated by Robinson (4-94) and Seales (4-107). The wicket still giving great help to the bowlers, 6 wickets falling to slip catches and 3 to keeper Simpson. Lunch was taken between the innings. Notts led by 131 runs.

After a cloudy morning, the sun came out during the luncheon interval. This coupled with the use of the rioller made batting temporarily easier. Haines hit two boundaries off the opening over of the Sussex reply bowled by Hutton (Pavilion End). Sussex were batting positively with Haines hitting two boundaries off O’Neill in the 4th over, including a four off the inside edge. Hutton pulled up lame after 4.4 overs of his opening spell. He returned to the field somewhat later with his leg strapped. Tongue completed the over. In the following over the opening partnership reached 50 off 59 balls. Farhan came on for the 11th over. Next over. Haines was dropped on 34 by Clarke at first slip off O’Neill - an easy and potentially costly chance. Tongue replaced O’Neill for the 16th over. Haines reached 50 off 63 balls with a six over point off a short delivery from Tongue in the 18th over. Notts desperately searching for a breakthrough, only having two fit seamers on the pitch at the time. They finally got it when Hughes (25) trying to cut a ball from Farhan too close to his body was caught by Verreynne, 89 for 1 in the 22nd over. Clark lasted seven balls before becoming Farhan's second victim lbw on the sweep, 93 for 2 in the 25th over. After a six over spell from Tongue, O’Neill came on from the Radcliffe Road End for the 28th over and with his fifth delivery had Alsop lbw for 4, 100 for 3. Sussex got to tea on 106 for three off 32 overs with Haines on 63 and Coles on 4.

Farhan conceded a single off the first over after tea. Conditions now were once again cloudy. O'Neill then picked up a sensational catch off his own bowling three balls into his post tea spell. Haines (64 off 111 balls, 9x4, 1x6) drove him hard down the pitch, O’Neill grabbing the catch low to his right. A brilliant instinctive catch. Sussex 107 for 4 in the 34th over. Carter (12) was very well caught by Duckett at second slip diving low to his left - a third wicket for O’Neill, 125 for 5 after 40 overs. Tongue replaced Farhan for the 45th over. Patterson-White came on for the 48th over. Coles was beaten for pace by Tongue and fell plumb lbw for 16, 150 for 6 in the 49th over. With the floodlights now on, Simpson hit Tongue for two boundaries in the 53rd over. Hudson-Prentice (5) charging down the pitch got a bottom edge to a Patterson-White delivery with the ball gently rolling back and hitting his stumps, 167 for 7 in the 54th over. Any hope of a two day win were extinguished when Sussex captain and dangerman John Simpson (35*) and Jack Carson (21*) added an unbroken 28 off the remaining 10.4 overs of the day. Hutton finally returned to bowling for the 55th over but did not take a wicket in a short three over burst from the Pavilion End. A tiring O'Neill replaced Patterson-White for the 60th over. Farhan came on for Hutton in the following over. Stumps were drawn at 18:39 with Sussex at the close 195 for 7 off 64 overs. With the wicket still offering a lot to the bowlers another 60 or so runs for Sussex on the board tomorrow could make for an interesting third day. Notts 16 overs away from the new ball. This match is far from over. MAG

25/04 Day 1

SUSSEX LICKED BY TONGUE

Notts had an excellent opening day at Trent Bridge today closing five runs behind visitors Sussex with seven first innings wickets still standing.

On a predominantly cloudy and cool day on a green tinged pitch on the Bridgford Road side of the square, Notts won the toss and elected to bowl. With James indisposed, in-form Patterson-White came into the Eleven. Duckett replaced McCann.

Off the third delivery of the match, Haines (1) was caught at third slip low down to his left by his almost namesake Haynes off Hutton, 1 for 1. O'Neill opened up with two maidens. In the 7th over, Hutton had Clark (8) lbw, 11 for two. In the 11th over, Aussie Daniel Hughes (12) was brilliantly caught low down to his right at backward point by Patterson-White off Hutton, 22 for 3. Tongue replaced O’Neill from the Radcliffe Road End for the 12th over and in his second over he had Alsop (5) lbw to a very quick yorker; 28 for 4 in the 14th over. Coles and Carter knuckled down and saw Sussex safely to the first interval. After a spell of 8 2 17 3 Hutton made way for O’Neill. Sussex reached 50 in the 21st over. Patterson-White came on for the 22nd over in order for Tongue and O’Neill to change ends. Hutton and Patterson-White returned for the 29th and 30th overs respectively. Sussex 75 for 4 off 31 overs at lunch with Coles on 29 and Carter on 18.

Coles (37) got hit in the ribs off a short ball from Tongue and this appeared to soften him up. Next ball he mistimed a pull shot off an even shorter delivery from Tongue and was caught by Hameed on the run at mid-on; 85 for 5 in the 34th over. Simpson hit Hutton for four through mid-on to bring up the Sussex 100 in the 37th over. Hutton picked up his fourth wicket when Simpson (14) edged him to Duckett at second slip who took the simple catch; 116 for 6 after 39 overs. Farhan replaced Hutton in the 45th over. Patterson-White made it an all spin attack from the 48th over. Farhan lured Carter (46) down the pitch and edged the quicker ball from the off-spinner to Verreynne behind the stumps; 155 for 7 in the 51st over. In a reprise of the Durham match Tongue proved lethal with the older ball having just returned from the Pavilion End he took 3 wickets in 6 balls to wipe away the Sussex tail. With his opening delivery he had Hudson-Prentice (30) caught at the second attempt by Joe Clarke diving to his left at first slip; 166 for 8 in the 59th over. Four balls later, Carson (6) edged Tongue straight to Duckett at second slip, 169 for 9. Seales departed first ball caught by Verreynne down the legside, the ball appearing to flick straight off the Trinidadian’s pad. Sussex 169 all out off 59 overs Robinson 1*. The pacy and accurate Tongue finished with 13-2-44-5, he could well be playing for England in a months’ time at Trent Bridge against Zimbabwe. He was well supported by Hutton (16-4-53-4). O’Neill despite bowling impressively did not take a wicket! Notts had bowled accurately and well on the helpful deck and were aided by a faultless fielding display. An excellent team effort in the field.

Robinson bowled the opening over from the Pavilion End, Hameed hitting him to the point ropes. Seales shared the new ball with Robinson and in his fourth over Slater (20) hit him for three boundaries, but off the last ball of the over, Seales got his revenge having Slater caught in the gully by Coles.  Notts 36 for 1 after 8 overs. The ninth over bowled by Robinson went for 10 with two boundaries for Hameed. Hudson-Prentice replaced Seales for the 10th over. Duckett played and missed at his first two deliveries but  found the extra cover ropes next ball to bring up the Notts 50. Duckett (9) was playing too loose he edged Robinson through the slips, was nearly caught and bowled but then fell caught behind by Simpson off the former England paceman, 55 for 2 off 11 overs. After a nine over spell from the Pavilion End Robinson was replaced by Seales. In the 20th over, Clarke (19) hit Hudson-Prentice for two boundaries in three balls but then was caught at second slip by Tom Clark off Hudson-Prentice; 80 for 3. Hameed was joined by Haynes and they added an unbroken 84 runs in the remaining 17 overs of the day. Haynes particularly strong in the point region.

In the 24th over, Clark came on from the Radcliffe Road End his first ball loosener was smashed for a mid-wicket four by Hameed. Five balls later Hameed hit a full toss from Clark to the cover boundary. An offside two for Haynes off Seales brought up the Notts 100 in the 25th over; Haynes and Hameed hit boundaries off the same over which cost 11 runs. Robinson returned for the 27th over. Haynes hit Clark to the point ropes to bring up the 50 partnership in 49 balls in the 28th over which cost 12 runs, Haynes having found the cover boundary two balls before. Slow left-armer Coles came on for the 30th over. A legside single for Hameed off Robinson saw him to an 80-ball half ton in the 31st over. Off-spinner Jack Carson had a bowl from the 33rd over and a four through the covers by Hameed took Notts passed 150. Stumps were drawn at 18:24 with Notts 164 for 3 off 37 overs with the calm Hameed on 67 and the classy Haynes on 34. Very much Notts day in this joint top of the table battle. MAG

24/04

Notts Squad:

Haseeb Hameed c

Ben Duckett

Ben Slater

Freddie McCann

Joe Clarke

Kyle Verreynne

Jack Haynes

Lyndon James

Fergus O'Neill

Brett Hutton

Farhan Ahmed

Josh Tongue

James Hayes

Sussex Squad: 

John Simpson c
Oli Carter
James Coles
Fynn Hudson-Prentice
Jayden Seales
Ari Karvelas
Jack Carson
Ollie Moore
Tom Haines
Tom Alsop
Ollie Robinson
Daniel Hughes
Tom Clark

Another top of the table encounter. 

Ben Duckett is due to be selected for this one, but is Josh Tongue?

Which bowlers do we have that are fit? Is Joe Clarke fit enough to start?

Is Dane Schadendorf being rested from the 2s this week in readiness as being cover for Kyle Verreynne in this game? He is listed to bat today (Thursday) however.

Lots of questions, but no answers from Pravda.

Pre-season preview

Previewed by Bruce Talbot - ECB Reporters Network supported by Rothesay

Captain: John Simpson

Head Coach: Paul Fabrace

2024 finish: Champions (Division Two)

2024 highest run-scorer: John Simpson (1197)

2024 highest wicket-taker: Jack Carson (50)

Key winter moves: Ex-Somerset top-order batter George Thomas spent part of the winter working for a power-tool company in Melbourne. Farbrace regards him as a player with unfulfilled potential. After trials in January, another 21-year-old signed in slow left-armer Troy Henry whose wages for the first year of his contract will be paid by the ACE programme. Medium-fast bowler Nantes Oosthuizen, nurtured at Seaford College by former skipper Chris Adams, joined on a rookie contract.

What we’re looking forward to seeing: Once again Paul Farbrace has recruited a group of solid, proven overseas players with Dan Hughes, Jayden Seales, Nathan McAndrew and Jaydev Unadkat all returning for a second - and in Unadkat’s case third – season while Australian seamer Gurinder Sandhu arrives during June and July. Their contributions will be pivotal to hopes of staying up and having another good run in the Blast, where they were semi-finalists last year.

Player to watch: Opener Tom Haines, who signed a new three-year deal in the winter, averages 37.60 and has made 4,588 first-class runs but none of them against Division One attacks. If he can flourish against better bowlers – and there’s never been any doubt about his technique or temperament – then it will help Sussex’s chances of establishing themselves in Division One a lot and perhaps enhance his claims for a Test place as well.

Final thought: Sussex return to Division One after a ten-year absence and Paul Farbrace has targeted a top-four finish. He’ll have a better idea of whether that’s achievable after the first month when Sussex face Warwickshire, Surrey, Somerset and Nottinghamshire – all established top-flight counties. There shouldn’t be many concerns about their bowling attack, but can Sussex score enough runs? Contributions from skipper John Simpson and a strong middle order may be crucial again.