One change to squad for Somerset match; plus full match day information

Sussex Sharks welcome Somerset to The 1st Central County Ground on Wednesday for their next Royal London One-Day Cup fixture.

After wins against Surrey and Kent Spitfires in their first two matches, the Sharks will be looking to continue their fine start to the tournament.

Jason Gillespie has made one change to the matchday squad named for the opening fixtures, with Stiaan van Zyl coming in for Michael Burgess.

After his electric unbeaten century against the Spitfires on Sunday, Phil Salt is top of the Sharks’ tournament run-scorers list with 169 runs from his two innings so far. Harry Finch and Luke Wright have 95 and 92 runs respectively from their two outings.

Five Sussex bowlers have economy rates below a run-a-ball, with Danny Briggs leading the way having conceded an average of just 5.15 runs per over so far. Will Beer is not far behind with an economy rate of 5.20 runs per over.

Mir Hamza is top of Sussex’s wicket taking list with five dismissals to his name. He is followed closely by George Garton with four.

Looking ahead to the Somerset clash and reflecting on the Sharks’ campaign so far, Gillespie said: “Stiaan van Zyl is available again, which means a batsman had to miss out from the squad. Unfortunately, that will be Michael Burgess for tomorrow’s match.

“I’ve been really pleased with the ways the lads have adapted to conditions in our opening fixtures. We had a slower wicket at Hove on Friday and then a fast, bouncy wicket at Beckenham and both bowlers and batsmen adjusted their games accordingly. It’s something we talk a lot about, so to see it being put into practice is very pleasing.

“There have been some superb individual performances in our wins so far, but the contribution throughout the team in the field has been what has impressed me the most. The boys’ speed to the ball and movement off the ball has been excellent and the quality of the throwing has been exceptional.   

“Once again, we’ll be asking the boys to look to enjoy themselves and entertain the crowd when they take the field against Somerset.”

Everyone at Sussex Cricket would like to express their gratitude for the support of match sponsor L&S Printing and Sussex Sharks Royal London One-Day Cup shirt sponsor, Parafix.  

Sussex Sharks Squad:

Ben Brown (capt/wk)

Will Beer

Danny Briggs

Laurie Evans

Harry Finch

George Garton

Mir Hamza

Chris Jordan

Abi Sakande

Phil Salt

Stiaan van Zyl

David Wiese

Luke Wright

Opposition

Like Sussex, and two other sides, Somerset go into Wednesday’s match with two wins from two. Thanks to their 264-drubbing of Kent on Friday – the 22nd largest margin of victory in terms of runs in the history of List A cricket – the Cidermen sit top of the South Group on net run rate. They followed that effort with a much tighter two-run victory against Glamorgan on Easter Sunday.

Tom Banton – centurion against Kent – is Somerset’s leading run scorer with 121 runs from his two innings. Craig Overton is in fine fettle with the ball, having taken eight wickets from his 17 overs, which have cost an average of just 4.05 runs each.

Squad: Tom Abell (c), Azhar Ali, Tom Banton, George Bartlett, Dom Bess, Jack Brooks, Josh Davey, Lewis Gregory, Tim Groenewald, James Hildreth, Craig Overton, Peter Trego and Roelof van der Merwe.

Match Day Information

Play starts at 11am, with gates open from 9.30am.  Digital tickets are available to purchase online until the start of the match. These can be printed at home or downloaded to a mobile device.

Tickets will also be available to purchase from the Eaton Road entrance once gates open. Please note, refunds are not available for tickets purchased on the day of the match in line with Sussex Cricket’s ticketing policy.

For this match, adult spectators may enter the ground with a maximum of either four 500ml cans of beer/lager or a 75cl bottle of wine.

For those that are unable to attend, a free (registration required) live stream of tomorrow’s match accompanied by commentary from BBC Sussex will be available via the Sussex Cricket Match Day Centre. The Match Day Centre also includes a live scorecard, live statistics and live text commentary via the @SussexCCC Twitter account throughout the match.