Match Report

Sixteen wickets for Sussex's bowlers secure thumping win on day three at Arundel

22 Jun 2018

Sussex won their second Specsavers County Championship match of the season at Arundel when they defeated Durham by an innings and 64 runs 12 minutes before the scheduled close of the third day.

It was a deeply impressive performance by Sussex, with a spirited bowling and fielding performance building on the maiden century heroes of their solitary innings, Tom Haines and Phil Salt.

On a fine batting track, Sussex took seven wickets for 65 runs in the morning session and then, having enforced the follow on with Durham 341 runs behind, a further five wickets fell for 95 runs in the afternoon session to leave victory in sight.

When Durham resumed on 202-4 the overnight pair of Will Smith (90) and Gareth Harte (12) were still nurturing hopes of avoiding the follow-on. On an unhelpful surface Sussex were hoping they would be able to make a breakthrough with the new ball, which would have been available six overs into the morning session.

But they didn’t need it. Durham collapsed, losing their last six wickets for just nine runs in 10.5 overs in only 43 minutes. Danny Briggs took the key wicket of Smith – lbw sweeping - with the fifth ball of the day. David Wiese then broke the innings with three wickets in seven deliveries. He bowled Stuart Poynter and then Josh Coughlin, shouldering arms, first ball. Then he had Nathan Rimmington caught down the leg-side in his next over and Durham had lost four wickets for one run.

Harte, who had scored one run in half an hour as he watched miserably from the non-striker’s end, was caught behind off Briggs and, finally, Wiese bowled Matt Salisbury for eight.

Sussex struck five overs into Durham’s second innings when Cameron Steel shouldered arms and was bowled by a fine nip-backer from Jofra Archer.

Durham were unable to turn the tide. At 61, Tom Latham was bowled by Ollie Robinson through the gate when he might have been forward.

At 77, Smith – again a most important wicket – was brilliantly caught by Harry Finch at wide second slip, low down and right-handed off Wiese. Four balls later Paul Collingwood, playing across one from the same bowler, was lbw and it was 88-5 when Harte was sharply caught down the leg-side by Ben Brown off Briggs, who then had Graham Clark lbw to make it 137-6.

A fighting 84 from Poynter, off 109 balls with 11 fours, ensured Sussex took the new ball. Robinson soon bowled Salisbury and Archer completed the match when he caught and bowled Rushworth.

Speaking at the close, Sussex’s victorious captain, Ben Brown said: ““I thought it would be a long day in the field today, and possibly a long day tomorrow. But to take wickets like that in the morning, with David [Wiese] and Briggsy bowling fantastically well, was a great boost and a shock for everyone on the ground, with so many wickets falling on a flat, flat pitch.

“It’s still early in the season but I’m delighted with the win. We worked really hard in the first batch of games but the weather was tricky for us and we missed out on a couple of wins. But this has been a special week for us, with the two young kids getting their first hundreds and then for the bowlers to find 20 wickets on that pitch was an amazing effort. And I was delighted with the fielding too. Finchy took a catch which changed the game.”

Sussex take a maximum 24 points from the match and now turn their attention from the longest to the shortest format.

They conclude this year’s Rathbones Arundel Festival of Cricket with a T20 against Ireland on Sunday as part of Ed Joyce’s Testimonial year, before getting their Vitality Blast campaign underway with a trip to Chelmsford to take on Essex Eagles on 4th July.