Sharks head to Chelmsford for next One-Day Cup appointment

An unchanged 13-man Sussex Sharks squad has made the trip to Chelmsford for Tuesday’s  Royal London One-Day Cup fixture against Essex Eagles.

The Sharks go into the fixture having returned to winning ways against Middlesex at Lord’s on Saturday, thanks to Luke Wright’s masterful innings and an excellent team performance in the field. Mir Hamza’s three wickets took his tournament haul to 11 and puts him in joint seventh place on the list of leading wicket takers.

🙌 The perfect way to start your Sunday...

Every six from @lukewright204’s stunning 166 at Lord’s! 🤩 pic.twitter.com/TurOMS9lkP

— Sussex Cricket (@SussexCCC) April 28, 2019

At the halfway point of their south group schedule, Sussex sit in third-place with three wins from four matches. A return of six points puts the side two behind both Somerset and Hampshire, who have both played five matches.

Reviewing the win against Middlesex and looking ahead to tomorrow’s match, Sharks head coach Jason Gillespie said: “The most pleasing thing about the trip to Lord’s was that we managed to find a way to win even though we weren’t at our best with the bat.

“Luke’s was a special knock that, with excellent support from Browny, gave us a chance that we then seized upon in the field. Our defensive work in the field was unbelievable and I couldn’t have been prouder of the boys. The have set very high standards so far in this year’s competition.

“There are always things improve and adapting quickly to conditions is something we are focussing on. A big part of that is making sure we communicate to each other about the opposition and conditions; and ensuring that we keep talking to each other and helping each other out.

💪 No rest for the wicked!

The boys have been hard at work in Hove today, ahead of tomorrow's @OneDayCup clash with Essex in Chelmsford. 🦈 #SharkAttack pic.twitter.com/QLKqIjQbPw

— Sussex Cricket (@SussexCCC) April 29, 2019

“Essex, particularly at home will present a really tough challenge and we’re excited about that and the chance to play against some fine players. We’ll have to play at our best to compete.”

Sussex Sharks Squad

Ben Brown (c) (w)
Ed Barnes
Will Beer
Danny Briggs
Laurie Evans
Harry Finch
George Garton
Mir Hamza
Abi Sakande
Phil Salt
Stiaan van Zyl
David Wiese
Luke Wright

Opposition

Essex ended Hampshire’s 100% record on Saturday with a comprehensive 111-run home win, their second victory in this year’s competition. Ravi Bopara was the hero of the piece for the Eagles, soaring high with 89 runs and three wickets. Captain Ryan ten Doeschate also made 89, while Matt Coles bagged four fairly expensive wickets on his List A debut for the club.

The team’s other victory came in their opening match against Glamorgan, which was followed by defeats at the hands of Middlesex, Surrey and Somerset.

The Eagles have missed Varun Chopra, who scored centuries in their first two games and remains the team’s top-scorer, but the opener is back in the squad for tomorrow’s match after recovering from a quad injury. Australian veteran seamer, Peter Siddle is Essex’s leading wicket-taker, with eleven scalps so far.

Squad: Ryan ten Doeschate (capt.), Ravi Bopara, Varun Chopra, Matt Coles, Alastair Cook, Sam Cook, Simon Harmer, Dan Lawrence, Aron Nijjar, Rishi Patel, Jamie Porter, Matt Quinn, Peter Siddle, Paul Walter, Tom Westley, Robbie White (wk)

Match Day Information

Play is scheduled to begin at 11am. Tickets are available via the Essex Cricket website.

Follow the game live on the Sussex Cricket Match Day Centre, including live text commentary via the @SussexCCC Twitter account, live stats and a live scorecard.

A live stream of the match will be available via the Essex Cricket website.