Hampshire win by 5 wickets at Hove

Hampshire beat Sussex by 5 wickets, securing their ninth win in ten matches at The 1st Central County Ground.

The match was something of a dead rubber as Hampshire had already qualified for the quarter finals, while Sussex were out of the competition. 

Sussex were put into bat by Hampshire and unusually, took a while to get going. It was the Sharks’ middle order that put runs on the board, with the best contributions coming from Bopara, Garton and Rawlins.

Sussex red ball captain Tom Haines, playing his first T20 game of the season, and Harrison Ward, took 21 off the sixth over, before being caught at long on from the bowling of Tom Prest, and Haines was stumped by McDermott. Rawlins swatted two sixes in a 22-ball 29 and Bopara made 35 off 25.

The most entertaining batting came at the end.  Garton top-scored with 37 off just 17 deliveries, with three fours and three sixes, one a vast one over long-on.  And Rashid Khan scored a typically unorthodox 25 off a dozen balls. 

Those contributions took Sussex to 180-8, in what looked like a defendable total against a strong side.

In response, Hampshire looked on course for a more comfortable victory when their prolific captain James Vince and Ben McDermott put on 86 for the first wicket, striking at ten runs an over.

But Hampshire’s batting faltered after Vince skied Delray Rawlins to the keeper for a 42-ball 65.  After the powerplay some tight bowling from Rashid Khan and Ravi Bopara and a flurry of middle order wickets left them needing 43 off the final five overs and then 39 off the last three.

In the end, Sussex were unable to take the wickets needed to get over the line. This would be the last time Sussex legend Will Beer would put on the blue T20 shirt for the club, following 15 years of service.

Beer led the team off after bowling the final over and was giving a standing ovation by the 4500 fans that made it down to see his final game at Hove.