Worcestershire vs Sussex | Day Three

Sussex survived a late fourth innings scare to secure a three-wicket win over Worcestershire on the third morning of their final Rothesay County Championship fixture of the season

The final four wickets of the Worcestershire innings fell inside 25 minutes of the third morning, where the hosts could only add 16 runs to their overnight total, as Ollie Robinson took his second five wicket haul of the match.

Requiring just 61 to win, Sussex made hard work of the chase, eventually knocking off the total with Worcestershire seamer Tom Taylor finishing with 4-22 on his way to ending the season with 58 Division One wickets. 

With the fate of both sides already sealed, the visitors’ final flourish saw them secure a mid-table finish, whilst the Pear’s resilient efforts went unrewarded with relegation already confirmed. 

Ben Gibbon was the first wicket to fall on a troubling morning for Worcestershire, when he was pinned LBW after offering no shot to an Ollie Robinson delivery that nipped back and clipped the pad of the nightwatchman, bring an end to his stubborn knock of 13.  

Roderick was the next man to depart, when his innings of 27 was brought to a close by the impressive Jaydev Unadkat who claimed his seventh wicket of a match dominated by the Sussex seamers.  

Matthew Waite and Ben Allison were dismissed in successive balls as Robinson finished with five wickets in the innings, walking away with superb match-figures of 11-142. 

Chasing 61 to win, Sussex lost opener Tom Haines for one when an excellent, diving catch at slip by Rob Jones to open the Worcestershire account.

A seemingly routine chase was momentarily thrown into doubt however, as Sussex slipped to 28-4, losing Hughes (16) and Coles (0) in consecutive overs courtesy of Taylor and Ben Allison, before Taylor struck for the 57th time this season in Division One to have Tom Alsop caught at slip. 

With just 16 required to win, Worcestershire refused to go down without a fight, as Matthew Waite claimed a wicket with his first ball of his spell, with first innings centurion John Simpson caught by Rehaan Edavalath after mistiming a pull shot into the deep.

Taylor had time to claim his 58th wicket of the season before Waite struck for a second time with Sussex still requiring three to win, but Ollie Robinson hit the winning runs through midwicket for his side to ensure they ended the season with a win.