Nine internationals in Sharks squad for sold-out Spitfires showdown

Nine full internationals have been named in the Sussex Sharks squad for their sold-out Vitality Blast match against group leaders Kent Spitfires at The 1st Central County Ground on Friday night.

Back from injury, Chris Jordan is in line for his first appearance of the tournament. He replaces Aaron Thomason in the squad, while Jofra Archer is added to the group after being made available by England.

Australian wicketkeeper Alex Carey is line for his home debut having impressed with a 46-ball 78 during the win away at Somerset on Sunday.

The Sharks have made an unbeaten start to this year’s Blast, with two wins and a tie to go with a wash out on the opening night.

As of Thursday afternoon, that record puts the side third in the South Group, tied on six points with second-placed Middlesex and two behind top-side Kent. Middlesex and Kent Spitfires meet each other at Lord’s tonight.  

Reflecting on his side’s win on the road against Somerset and looking forward to tomorrow’s match, Jason Gillespie said: “It was really pleasing to come away from Taunton with a win. It’s a typically hard place to get a result and the way we defended our decent total was brilliant. Everyone played their role.

“The Spitfires are flying high and we’ll have to play well again to give us the best chance of another win. We’ll have another capacity crowd behind us and the boys can’t wait for that and for the chance to put on a show for our fans.

“CJ is available for tomorrow’s game and we’ll see how he pulls up in the morning before making a call on whether he plays or not. We’ve got a battery of pace bowling options – particularly with Jofra available tomorrow night – and the last thing we want to do is rush a player back prematurely.”  

“It’s a massive game but one we’re really looking forward to and we take on the challenge.” 👊

Watch the boys prepare for tomorrow’s match as we catch up with @lukewright204, @CJordan and Alex Carey. 🦈 #SharkAttack pic.twitter.com/hl8U4A3BEl

— Sussex Cricket (@SussexCCC) August 1, 2019

Sussex Sharks Squad

Luke Wright (c), Jofra Archer, Will Beer, Danny Briggs, Alex Carey (wk), Laurie Evans, Harry Finch, Chris Jordan, Rashid Khan, Tymal Mills, Delray Rawlins, Ollie Robinson, Phil Salt, Reece Topley, David Wiese

Opposition

The Spitfires are the only team in this year’s Blast still with a 100% record. They sit atop the South Group with eight points having beaten Surrey, Essex Eagles, Hampshire and Somerset in their opening four fixtures.

Afghan overseas player Mohammad Nabi has been the team’s most explosive batsman, scoring his 81 runs at a strike-rate of 218.91. His dual tomorrow night with international teammate Rashid Khan should prove mouth-watering! Otherwise, run scoring has been shared around the Spitfires’ line-up, with six players making 30 or more in at least one innings.

Nabi and fellow overseas player, New Zealander Adam Milne have been Kent’s most parsimonious bowlers so far. Both have economy rates of 6.51 runs per over. Hardus Viljoen (econ: 6.71) is the team’s leading wicket-taker with eight scalps so far.

Sam Bilings remains unavailable with the shoulder injury he sustained during the Royal London One-Day Cup, while Kent’s leading run-scorer from the 2018 Blast Joe Denly is part of the England team playing Australia at Edgbaston.

Squad: Daniel Bell-Drummond (capt), Alex Blake, Jordan Cox, Zak Crawley, Sean Dickson, Fred Klaasen, Heino Kuhn, Adam Milne, Matt Milnes, Mohammad Nabi, Imran Qayyum, Ollie Robinson, Grant Stewart, Hardus Viljoen

Match Information

Sussex Sharks v Kent Spitfires at The 1st Central County Ground on Friday 2nd August. Play starts at 7pm, with gates opening at 5.30pm.

A guide to the game and a map of The 1st Central County Ground can be downloaded at the bottom of this page.

This match is completely SOLD OUT. No tickets will be available at the gates. Ticket holders are advised to arrive early to avoid a delay passing through security checks at the entrance to the ground.

The official Sussex Shark Vitality Blast replica playing shirt is currently available online and in the club shop with a 20% discount.

The reception/club shop will close at midday on Friday and reopen when gates open at 5.30pm.

Supporters that have missed out on securing tickets for the match will be able to follow the action live via the free live stream on the Sussex Cricket Match Centre.

Sussex Sharks’ remaining home Vitality Blast group matches are close to selling out. Limited tickets are available to buy here.