Surrey vs Sharks: Match Preview

The Sharks make the short trip to the Kia Oval tomorrow to take on Surrey in a local derby, with Sharks Head Coach Paul Farbrace naming a 14-player squad for the game. 

After a nail-biting win at home to Gloucestershire, the Sharks suffered defeat at Glamorgan and will be hoping to bounce back against one of the tournament's big hitters and local rivals, Surrey.

Squad

Alsop, Carson, Carter, Coles, Crocombe, Hudson-Prentice, Hughes, Lamb, Lenham, McAndrew, Mills (c), Robinson, Simpson (wk), Ward

Team News

Tom Clark remains unavailable due to the shoulder injury he picked up in the warm-up game against National Counties XI and will now undergo a period of rehabilitation. 

How to Watch

You can watch every single ball of the action, free of charge with our livestream on the Match Centre.

Grab Your Blast Tickets Today

The Sharks return to The 1st Central County Ground, with tomorrow's hosts the visitors this time around. 

Join us for a night of fantastic live music, great food and high-octane world-class T20 cricket. 

Beat the on-the-door price for Sharks vs Surrey by buying your ticket online.

P.S Don't forget, groups of 6 or more get a 10% discount of all tickets. See you Friday!

Sussex Cricket Society: Tea with Barry Richards

The Sussex Cricket Society In conjunction with Sussex Cricket is breaking new ground by holding a summer event. There will be an afternoon tea with Barry Richards at 3.00pm, on Sunday 7th July 2024, in The Long Room at The 1st Central County Ground. Hove.

At Hampshire, Barry formed a formidable partnership with another great, West Indian, Gordon Greenidge. He played just four Tests before South Africa’s widespread exclusion from world sport. 

In those four tests, Barry scored 508 runs at 72.57. He also represented the Rest of the World in England (a series replacing the planned South African tour) and later in the decade he joined the Kerry Packer World Series cricket.

Barry played, 204 first class games for Hampshire, scoring 15,607 runs at 50.50. It was not just the volume of runs, but also the manner he made them, always elegant and so easy on the eye, a real pleasure to watch.

This special event is open to Society members, Sussex Cricket members and their friends and associates. The cost is £22 per head. The tea will comprise of sandwiches scones, cake along with tea and coffee following Barry Richards’s talk.

Booking Details 

To apply please contact (this occasion only) Martyn Levitt either by phone 01903 495451, email martyn.levitt@hotmail.com or post 29 Chute Ave, High Salvington, Worthing, BN13 3DX by 25th June at the latest. 

Along with a note of your name, names of anyone coming with you, any dietary requirements and who you would like to sit with and finally your selected payment method. 

Payment can be made by either cheque payable to Sussex Cricket Society sent to Martyn, or Bank Transfer (Sort Code 60-13-09 Account No. 57843570) please show “JUL TEA plus your name” as the payment reference. Transfer is our preferred method. Early booking is recommended.

Please note - if a booking is cancelled after 25th June any payment will not be refunded.

The Sussex Cricket Society website: www.sussexcricketsociety.org If you like/love Sussex cricket, please consider joining the society. It is very easy to do online at a very reasonable £20 per year for an individual subscription.

Sussex Sharks VI vs Lancashire VI: Match Report

On Saturday 1st June Sussex began their National League campaign hosting Lancashire, the sides had finished 2nd and 3rd respectively in National Division 1 last year so a  tight game was expected. 

Lancashire won the toss and inserted their opponents onto  a  pitch that looked quite challenging following all of mays rain. 

Sussex lost both openers cheaply with a  smart field keeping the scoring rate low, Si Ledwith (51) looked to push the scoring on  and after a vicious pull through midwicket had brought up his 50 was dismissed next ball when 

Lancashire took an excellent running catch in the deep. This was the last success for Lancashire as Joe Harrison (77* ) and Toby Collins (50*) pushed the score on to 208-3  before stand in skipper Ian Tiny Morris declared the sharks innings at 30 overs. 

Lancashire shared the three wickets between their opening bowlers and their low extras count had helped to restrict the Sussex scoring.

Lancashire's reply underlined how difficult it was to score as Sussex bowled tight lines but the slow and low nature of the pitch made it very difficult to induce chances. 

Lancashire's opener Mahmood Zahid )42) batted doggedly  but at the other end the Lancashire batters looked more intent on survival than chasing the total. Matt Killen with 2  for 16 off 5  overs and Mark Bonds occasional leg spin returned 3  for 22 off 7 overs  were the pick of the Sussex bowlers but  Lancashire remained resolute and the game ended in a  draw with the visitors scoring 132  for 6.

With Sussex getting 12 points and Lancashire 9 both will be relatively happy with the outcome. Both teams switch their focus to the National knockout cup next with Lancashire travelling to beaten 2023 finalists Northampton and holders Sussex travel to face 2022 cup winners London Metro.

Sussex Sharks D40 vs Middlesex D40: Match Report

Following on from the Sussex’s impressive win over Lancashire at Hove two weeks ago, the side went into this game against Middlesex with a positive energy in the group. This was boosted when captain Bunday won the toss and elected bowl at an overcast Ansty cc.

The Sussex opening bowlers got to work and it was Gee (2/36) that made the early inroads, dismissing both the Middlesex opening batsman in the first 8 overs. 

The introduction of spin saw Vosloo (1/32) into the attack and he struck in his first over removing the stubborn Janjale just before the drinks break. 

Batten joined Greenway at the crease, who was keeping things ticking along nicely for Middlesex. Batten was dismissed shortly after the drinks break, bowled by Stuart (1/30).

With Middlesex on 102/4 after 23 overs and the game evenly poised, Nordin joined Greenway in the middle. This pair really took the game to the Sussex bowlers for the next overs 8 with a partnership worth 85 which also saw Greenway bring up his century. 

The change of ends for Pyle (4/39) worked a treat for Sussex as he was able to dismiss Greenway for 115 off 68 balls. This was the first of four bowled wickets for Pyle including the opportunity of a hat trick which was narrowly missed. 

Bunday (1/65) was also able to get in on the act with a wicket, caught comfortably by Ridge at Mid off. The pairs regular wickets towards the end of the innings saw Middlesex finish on 241/9 from their 40 overs.

Sussex knew this wasn’t going to be an easy chase but achievable with the power they have in their ranks. Openers Ridge and Piper strolled to the middle. It was a short stay for Ridge who was dismissed in the first over of the reply. 

Wicket keeper Elliott Brown joined Piper in the middle looking to rebuild the innings like the pair had done two weeks before against Lancashire. Unfortunately for Sussex, this wasn’t the case, Brown was caught behind in the second over. 

Sussex with an uphill task, found the game slipping away from them when Piper (6) and Gee were both dismissed by Nordin in the fifth over of the innings leaving the home side 15/4. 

Pyle (26) and skipper Bunday (7) came together, trying to show some resilience for the sharks who had seen their top order blown away in the blink of an eye. 

Bunday was the next man to depart, caught off the bowling of Nordin. Stuart (5) came to the crease but also fell victim to Nordin who completed his 5 wicket haul with Sussex 50/6. 

It was Deja vu for Sussex in the fourteenth over as they lost two wickets in the over for the second time in the match. The resilient Pyle was the first to go, bowled by Kumar. Dallaway quickly followed, trapped lbw. 

Loveland (9) and Ferguson (22) showed great character for the sharks with positive running between the wickets, trying to get as many runs as they could. The partnership ended just before drinks when Loveland was bowled by Jones, leaving Sussex 66/9.

Some great ball striking by Ferguson and determined batting by Vosloo (1) to stay with his partner saw Sussex creep up to 89. The final wicket fell when Ferguson was trapped lbw by Jones to bring the game to a close. 

Sussex next travel to Surrey on the 9th June at the Oval for their fourth match of the season. A second vs third encounter in the table with the sharks looking to bounce back from their performance against Middlesex.

Glamorgan vs Sharks: Match Report

Glamorgan claimed their first win of the 2024 Vitality Blast with a 25 run victory over the Sharks in Cardiff, with Sam Northeast’s 61 not out enough to set up a winning target. 

Four wickets for Tymal Mills helped to restrict Glamorgan to 183 for seven from their 20 overs but a solid Glamorgan bowling display, and a much improved effort in the field from their first match in this competition against Surrey, saw them defend the target. 

James Coles top scored for Sussex with a career best 69 not out but he had little support from the rest of the Sussex batting line up. 

The star with the ball for Glamorgan was Mason Crane who finished with figures of two for 22 from his four overs as Sussex finished on 158 for six. 

Regular wickets throughout the Glamorgan innings meant they had to fight throughout to keep the scoring going, but significant contributions throughout the order allowed them to post a competitive total. The home side’s PowerPlay brought 56 runs for the loss of two wickets with Chris Cooke and Sam Northeast going well. 

Cooke was given a life on 21 when Dan Hughes slipped while attempting to take what should have been a straightforward catch off the bowling of Danny Lamb. Just as it looked as if Glamorgan would take full advantage of this mistake, Cooke was dimissed by Mills. 

A solid stand of 68 between Northeast and Colin Ingram seemed to be setting a platform for them to attack the Sussex bowling in the death overs. 

Two wickets in two balls from Mills pegged them back once again. The first was Ingram who was bowled off an inside edge, then Marnus Labuschagne was bowled next ball by a that beat him for pace. 

Mills claimed his fourth wicket when he had Dan Douthwaite dismissed for 11 when he gave a catch to Oli Carter and long on to give him his second four wicket haul of the competition so far. 

Northeast was there at the end, hitting the last ball of the innings for six to set Sussex a target of 184. 

Sussex started brightly thanks to an expensive over from Tom Bevan but two Sussex wickets inside the PowerPlay slowed them a little.

 A steady stand of 42 between Carter and James Coles kept them in the contest. Carter was dismissed for 33 when he was caught by Eddie Byrom off the bowling of Ingram, but Glamorgan felt they had dismissed him in the previous over but a low catch from Tom Bevan was adjudicated to have not been taken cleanly by the umpires. 

As had been the case throughout the Glamorgan innings, regular wickets meant that there was always the need for an element of rebuilding and three quick wickets saw Sussex go from 73 for two to 85 for five. 

Just at the point where Sussex needed to accelerate Crane put the brakes on thanks to his excellent spell that did not concede a single boundary. 

The second of Crane’s wickets came from a fantastic boundary catch from Labuschagne that saw him toss the ball back into play to claim the wicket of John Simpson. 

Coles batted intelligently for his first fifty in T20 cricket, but with no support around him the required rate kept climbing. By the start of the 18th over Sussex needed 65 runs from the final 18 balls, a task that was too much for them as Glamorgan secured their first win of the season

Photo Credit: Huw Evans Agency

Report Provided by ECB Reporters' Network

Reaction from skipper Tymal Mills

Glamorgan vs Sharks: Match Preview

The Sharks are back in Blast action after a thrilling opening victory against Gloucestershire. They travel to Sophia Gardens tomorrow to take on Glamorgan and Paul Farbrace has named an unchanged 14-player squad for the game. 

Squad

Alsop, Carson, Carter, Coles, Crocombe, Hudson-Prentice, Hughes, Lamb, Lenham, McAndrew, Mills (c), Robinson, Simpson (wk), Ward

Team News

Tom Clark is unavailable after picking up a shoulder injury.

How to Watch

You can watch every single ball of the action, free of charge with our livestream on the Match Centre.

Sharks vs Gloucestershire: Match Report

Sussex Sharks scrambled a bye off the final ball of the game to get their Vitality Blast campaign off to a successful start with a three-wicket win over Gloucestershire at The 1st Central County Ground.

Chasing 168, the final over began with Sussex needing ten to win but Fynn Hudson-Prentice, whose 47 appeared to have taken them to the brink of victory, was caught behind to give Matt Taylor his third wicket. 

With eight needed off three deliveries, Jack Carson swung a six onto the pavilion roof and then scrambled a single to leave Nathan McAndrew facing the final ball. 

McAndrew failed to make contact, but James Bracey missed his shy at the stumps and Sussex, who only won once at The 1st Central County Ground in last year’s tournament, had completed a breathless triumph.

Gloucestershire will feel it was a game they should have won, in particular the Taylor brothers Jack and Matt. Skipper Jack got them up to what looked to be a competitive total of 167 for 8 on a hybrid pitch offering decent pace and carry with 52, then Matt became the third bowler in the match on a hat-trick when Oli Carter failed to control a short ball and Charlesworth dived full length to his right at short third to brilliantly cling one-handed onto Tom Alsop’s full-blooded cut shot.

When James Coles was bowled making room to manoeuvre David Payne through the off side and debutant Daniel Hughes played around a straight one from left-arm spinner Graeme van Buuren, Sussex were 53 for 4 in the eighth over and up against it, but John Simpson joined Hudson-Prentice to add 56 off 37 balls and get the chase back on course.

Simpson made 36 off 19 before pulling a ball from Marchant de Lange to mid-wicket, but Lamb and Hudson-Prentice maintained the momentum with 47 off 32 to take Sussex to within 13 of victory with two overs remaining. There was another twist when Ajeet Singh Dale deceived Lamb with a slower ball and conceded just three runs to set up a thrilling final over but Sussex got over the line. 

Jack Taylor clearly benefited from a move up to five as he made his third fifty in the format before becoming one of three victims in the final over for Sussex’s new skipper Tymal Mills, who finished with 4 for 25. 

Taylor came in halfway through the innings and took the initiative after McAndrew had picked up two wickets with successive balls in the 14th over to leave Gloucestershire on 111 for 5. 

He helped plunder 19 off the penultimate over, swinging Lamb over mid-wicket and out of the ground for his third six before Mills showed all his experience at the end of the innings, conceding just three runs and removing Taylor to a catch at deep square leg and foxing van Buuren and Matt Taylor with his slower ball. It was to prove a crucial contribution. 

Gloucestershire had been in good shape when openers Miles Hammond and Cameron Bancroft added 59 but it was a good night for Carson, who was making his T20 debut and took two wickets in his only over to remove Hammond and Bracey. 

Bancroft looked untroubled until a searing yorker from Australian compatriot McAndrew spectacularly split his leg stump in two, but Jack Taylor helped wrest back the initiative by adding 64 off 35 balls with Ben Charlesworth and his sibling maintained Gloucestershire’s momentum before Sussex fought back. 

Report provided by ECB Reporters' Network

Reaction from Fynn Hudson-Prentice

Sharks vs Gloucestershire: Match Preview

The Sharks are back in Blast action tomorrow night at The 1st Central County Ground, starting the campaign with the visit of Gloucestershire. Paul Farbrace has named a 14-player squad for the game, which starts at 7pm.

Squad

Alsop, Carson, Carter, Coles, Crocombe, Hudson-Prentice, Hughes, Lamb, Lenham, McAndrew, Mills (c), Robinson, Simpson (wk), Ward

Team News

Tom Clark picked up a shoulder injury in last night's warm-up game and will miss the first two T20 matches. Jayden Seales is rested, Nathan McAndrew and Dan Hughes come in as overseas players. 

Gate Information 

Both the main entrance (Eaton Road) and North gate will be open for spectators from 5:30pm. The action gets underway at 7pm. 

Coming to the Game?

Check out our new handy Guide to the Game, for all the important information you need to plan your night with us at the Blast.

Grab Your Blast Tickets Today

There is still time to get your tickets before Tymal Mills leads his Sharks team out on to the pitch at The 1st Central County Ground tomorrow.

Join us for a night of fantastic live music, great food and high-octane world-class T20 cricket. 

Beat the on-the-door price for Sharks vs Gloucestershire by buying your ticket online.

P.S Don't forget, groups of 6 or more get a 10% discount of all tickets. See you Friday!

Can't make the game?

You can still watch every single ball of the action, free of charge with our livestream on the match day centre.

Sharks vs National Counties XI: Match Report

The Sharks warmed up for Friday's T20 Blast opener with a comfortable win over a National Counties Challengers XI at The 1st Central County Ground.

It was the National Counties XI Challengers who won the toss and put the Sharks into bat, with the familiar Tom Clark partnered by overseas recruit Dan Hughes and the pair wasted no time building a platform for the innings.

Clark and Hughes shared a 103 stand before Clark retired on 49 not-out. Hughes, who has won two Big Bash tournaments in his native Australia, looked in fantastic nick for his first Sharks run-out. 

The Sydney Sixers big-hitter bludgeoned his way to 74 runs from just 42 deliveries, including six 4s and five 6s, a welcome sight for Sharks funs ahead of the T20 Vitality Blast campaign. 

After the first-wicket stand the Challengers managed to stem the row of runs somewhat, before useful knocks from both James Coles (26*) and Fynn Hudson-Prentice (12) took the Sharks to a total of 191-5.

It was a familiar face opening the batting for the visitors, with Sharks' Harrison Ward facing the first delivery the National Counties XI. Ward, a product of the Sussex and Oxfordshire partnership made 9 runs before his wicket was taken by Ollie Robinson. 

The Sharks seam attack of Mills, Robinson, McAndrew and Lamb looks one that could trouble many sides in this year's Blast, particularly with the spin support from Coles and Carson.

The Sharks bowlers ensured the Challengers were always behind the going rate, however skipper Dan Lincoln proved a tough nut to crack.

His impressive 70 from 47 balls ensured his side were still in with a chance until his night was ended by allrounder Danny Lamb, who has settled well on the South coast. 

James Coles proved his worth once again with ball in hand, taking 2 wickets in one over. There was also wickets for McAndrew, Tymal Mills and Fynn Hudson-Prentice to secure victory by 28 runs.

Sharks vs National Counties XI: Match Preview

Tonight the Sussex Sharks warm-up for the T20 Blast campaign with a warm-up match against a National Counties XI at The 1st Central County Ground, starting at 7pm. Head Coach Paul Farbrace has named a 14-player squad for the game.

Squad

Alsop, Carson, Carter, Clark, Coles, Crocombe, Hudson-Prentice, Hughes, Lamb, Lenham, McAndrew, Mills (c), Robinson, Simpson (wk)

Harrison Ward will feature for the National Counties XI. 

Spectator Information

Gate Information 

Both the main entrance (Eaton Road) and North gate will be open for spectators from 5:30pm. The action gets underway at 7pm. 

Free Entry

Entry to this game is absolutely free of charge, however you must claim your free ticket(s) online ahead of the game. All you have to do is visit our ticketing website to claim yours. 

Sussex Cricket Foundation Donation

As the game is free of charge we would like to encourage spectators to make a small donation to the Sussex Cricket Foundation. This can be done when claiming your free ticket online, through the ticketing website.

Any donation you can manage is greatly appreciated and will help to continue the great work the Foundation carries out in the County. Find out more by visiting their website.

Food & Drink

Although a friendly fixture, the same ground regulations apply as they would for a normal T20 Blast fixture. Spectators are NOT permitted to bring alcohol into the ground for this game. 

Plenty of food and drink concessions will be available throughout the game.

Cashless Venue

We’d like to remind all spectators that The 1st Central County Ground is now a cashless venue. This means that only card or contactless payments will be accepted (including Apple Pay and Google Pay) throughout our venue. 

Livestream

Tonight's game will be livestreamed via our Match Day Centre, without commentary.

Grab Your Blast Tickets Today

There is just two days left until Tymal Mills leads his Sharks team out on to the pitch at The 1st Central County Ground now. 

Join us for a night of fantastic live music, great food and high-octane world-class T20 cricket. 

Beat the on-the-door price for Sharks vs Gloucestershire by buying your ticket online.

P.S Don't forget, groups of 6 or more get a 10% discount of all tickets. See you Friday!