Sussex World Blog: Bertie Foreman

In the next edition of our player blogs written for Sussex World, Bertie Foreman talks about his memories of growing up with dreams of following in the footsteps of his cricket heroes, and what it will mean to the young players to be playing for their country in the England U19 v India U19 ODI series.

Read the full blog on the Sussex World website.

Sussex vs Warwickshire: Match Preview

Red-ball action returns to The 1st Central County Ground tomorrow with Warwickshire making the trip to the South Coast, and with only five points separating the two sides, it's set to be another four days of intriguing Division One cricket.

Team News

Paul Farbrace has named a 13-player squad for the match, and with Jofra Archer re-called by England, a space is up for grabs in the first XI bowling attack. 

Carson, Carter, Clark, Coles, Crocombe, Haines, Hudson-Prentice, Hughes, Ibrahim, Karvelas, Robinson, Sandhu, Simpson* (wk)

Free Entry to Day One

Tomorrow we celebrate County Cricket Day and we've made entry to the first day, completely free of charge to all spectators. Join us for a day of the finest County Cricket in the Sussex sunshine. We advise that you claim a free ticket online, in advance, to help speed up entry in the morning.

Opening Times and Running Order

Gates open from 930am, with the toss taking place at 1030am and the first ball at 11am. 

Sixes Social Cricket

Ever fancied taking on the Sussex Sharks bowling attack? Well that is absolutely possible thanks to our brand new Sixes Social Cricket nets at The 1st Central County Ground.

Step into the interactive nets and take on the likes of Tymal Mills and Chiara Green and put your skills to the test. Plus, they serve a range of fantastic food & drinks in the bar. See you at Sixes! 

Matchday Dining

A small number of spaces are left in the Dining Room tomorrow for our Matchday Carvery. It costs just £21.50pp and includes a carvery of your choice, plus dessert. To book your space, please pop into the Ticket Office in the morning. The carvery is served from 1pm in the Spen Cama Pavilion. 

England add Jofra Archer to squad for second Test against India

The England Men’s selection panel has added Sussex fast bowler Jofra Archer to the squad for the Rothesay second Test match against India at Edgbaston, starting on Wednesday 2 July 2025.

England Men's Test Squad:

Ben Stokes (Durham) – Captain
Jofra Archer (Sussex)
Shoaib Bashir (Somerset)
Jacob Bethell (Warwickshire)
Harry Brook (Yorkshire)
Brydon Carse (Durham)
Sam Cook (Essex)
Zak Crawley (Kent)
Ben Duckett (Nottinghamshire)
Jamie Overton (Surrey)
Ollie Pope (Surrey)
Joe Root (Yorkshire)
Jamie Smith (Surrey)
Josh Tongue (Nottinghamshire)
Chris Woakes (Warwickshire)

The 30-year-old right-arm quick returns to the England Test set-up for the first time since February 2021 and will be looking to add to his 13 Test caps at Edgbaston next week. 

Congratulations, Jof!

Sussex Cricket is delighted to announce that both Brad Currie and Troy Henry have signed one-year contract extensions with the Club. 

Brad Currie has put pen-to-paper on a new T20-only contract, while Troy Henry has agreed to an extension to his Rookie contract. 

Brad Currie

Brad Currie initially joined Sussex on a short-term deal in 2022, making an immediate impact on debut, taking 6-93 in the County Championship against Middlesex at Lord’s.

He then went on to become a key member of the Sharks’ white-ball attack, taking 12 wickets in 8 appearances as he helped the side reach the semi-finals of the Royal London Cup.

Brad continued to shine in the T20 Blast for the Sharks with his tricky left-arm swing bowling, taking 16 wickets and earning call-ups to his national team, Scotland. 

In May of 2025, Brad picked up his 50th ODI wicket for Scotland in just 27 appearances.

Brad spoke of his joy at signing another extension with Sussex: “I’m very pleased to be signing for another year at Sussex.

“I’m loving playing my cricket here and I hope I can continue to do so for many years whilst bringing success to the club, starting off by qualifying for the quarter-finals this year!”

Troy Henry

Troy initially impressed the Sussex coaching staff after attending an open trial at The 1st Central County Ground in January of this year. 

The left-arm spinner and bat is the former captain of the ACE team, a charity that engages young people of African and Caribbean Heritage, helping to provide them with opportunities to become professionals in the game.

Troy made history when he became the first player to be offered a professional Rookie contract by the ACE programme. 

Henry has been developing his game predominantly in Sussex 2nd XI, taking 14 wickets across all formats.

Speaking on the extension, he said: “I'm very happy to continue my journey here and the opportunities given to live my dream. Looking forward to the future at Sussex!”

Sussex Cricket Director or Cricket, Paul Farbrace, commented: “I’m delighted Brad has committed to extending his stay at Hove. He is a quality T20 performer and is a brilliant professional.

"Brad has developed a lot and with his role in the Scottish National team is gaining great experience."

"We are all thrilled with the way Troy has taken to professional cricket. The work the ACE program has done with Troy has made a huge difference.

"It is a great example of how the ACE program is providing opportunity for young people to develop as people and cricketers through their system.

"We are looking forward to helping Troy continue his learning and development."
 

Sussex Sharks Women head to Newport tomorrow to face Glamorgan in a key match in the Vitality Blast.

The Sharks are in second place in the Vitality Blast Women League Two South Group, holding a narrow one-point advantage over third-placed Glamorgan, who have a game in hand. With only the top two sides securing a place at Finals Day, Friday’s fixture could prove crucial.

The sides have already faced each other in the competition already, as the Sharks suffered a narrow defeat at Hove by a mere 5 runs. That was the third time they've faced each other this season, and every match has finished increasingly closer. 

The Opposition

Glamorgan were victorious against the group leaders in their most recent outing. They won by 30 runs against Middlesex at Colwyn Bay after posting a score of 171-4, largely thanks to Captain Lauren Parffit's 75* and Daisy Jeanes' 53. With the ball, Poppy Tulloch was the pick of the bowlers, taking 3-18 as Glamorgan secured an impressive victory to make it two wins and one defeat so far in the competition.

Squad

Alexia Walker has picked a 13-player squad for the trip to Glamorgan tomorrow:

Mollie Adams, Anna Buckle, Izzy Collis, Kali-Ann Docherty, Indigo Gentry, Chiara Green, Nancy Harman*, Rachel King, Anna Lewis, Eve O’Neill, Talitha Stanley, Jazz Westley, Phoebe Wilkinson.

How to Watch

As always, you can watch every ball, free of charge, via our Match Day Centre. You will need to register for a free account to access the stream, statistics, replays and live scorecard. You can find information on how to register here.

The action gets underway tomorrow at 2.30pm. 

A watchful century from Danial Ibrahim and a gritty 85 from John Simpson guided Sussex to a draw on the final day of their Rothesay County Championship clash with Durham. 

The pair were watchful as they looked to protect their position in the match, with a probing opening spell from Matthew Potts the most trouble the visiting batters faced on a sedate final morning. 

Simpson and Ibrahim got the Sussex lead past 200 and resumed after lunch. Sam Conners removed Simpson 15 runs short of another century, but Ibrahim remained calm to reach three figures for the second time in his First Class career.

Sussex finished on 322 for six with the teams shaking hands at 4.50 pm.

The draw means that both sides have consolidated their position in a congested mid-table region following this game, with Sussex hosting Warwickshire in the next round that starts on Sunday, while Durham travel to The Oval to face second-placed Surrey.

Resuming on 111 for four with a lead of 145, Sussex pair Simpson and Ibrahim were watchful in the face of some probing bowling from Potts and Ben Raine. 

Sussex continued their plan, taking time out of the game, with the pair rarely letting their rearguard action slip in the first hour. 

Potts had a couple of LBW shouts against Ibrahim turned down as the Durham quick searched for a breakthrough. 

Simpson broke the shackles as he got the first boundary of the day 50 minutes into proceedings, flicking a Raine delivery off his legs for four. 

The first hour was successfully negated and Alex Lees brought Bas de Leede into the attack, which brought around some aggression from Ibrahim, who picked up back-to-back boundaries, his first of the day. 

Ibrahim then brought up his first half-century of the season from an attritional 161 deliveries, while skipper Simpson pulled a Conners ball for four to reach his fifty from 106 balls.

The lunch break came and things continued in the same vein, with the Durham bowlers toiling while Sussex were happy to edge further towards the draw. 

Ibrahim did punish any freebies offered by the Durham bowling attack as he pulled a Will Rhodes short ball for four, but he survived an LBW shout from Raine when Durham took the second new ball. 

He then responded by playing a delightful cover drive off the bowling of Raine, but the Durham man was testing the 20-year-old. 

The Sussex lead was edging towards an insurmountable target for Durham with the clock ticking and overs running out. 

Simpson was also having a testing time against Potts, with the England man sending a couple past the Sussex captain’s outside edge, but he responded by playing a crunching cover drive off Raine for four.

Potts came so close to a breakthrough, but Ollie Robinson dropped Simpson on 77 as the Sussex skipper gloved one down the legside, but Conners got him soon after for 85 when he chipped one up in the air and Lees produced an excellent catch at mid-off. 

Ibrahim then reached his first century of the season from 264 deliveries with a single on the legside. 

The 20-year-old guided his side to tea alongside Fynn Hudson-Prentice, who tried to be aggressive after the break but Drissell bowled him for 26 as he missed one completely. 

That brought Jack Carson to the crease who was there with Ibrahim when the two sides settled for a draw.

Debutant Gurinder Sandhu starred for Sussex on day three of their Rothesay County Championship clash with Durham, but the match is edging towards a draw after a mix of rain and bad light caused play to end early at Banks Homes Riverside. 

Durham had a tough morning with Australian Sandhu (5/83) taking the role of chief tormentor, picking up a five-wicket haul on debut as Durham lost their final four wickets for 26 runs to leave them on 327, a first innings deficit of 34. 

Durham bounced back through Matthew Potts after lunch to put Sussex under pressure at 27 for three, but James Coles was once again a thorn in the home team’s side as he led a Sussex recovery with another fifty. 

After several disruptions because of rain and bad light across the afternoon, play finished early with Sussex on 111 for four at close, 145 runs ahead.

Resuming on 249 for five, it was Graham Clark and Bas de Leede’s job to get Durham quick runs and whittle down the 112 deficit as soon as possible. 

Durham’s top run scorer Clark continued his fine form as he reached fifty from 89 balls, but Sussex bowlers Ollie Robinson and Sandhu restricted run making opportunities with a new ball, which was taken just prior to close on day two. 

Robinson got the breakthrough for Sussex removing Clark for 51 as the Durham man attempted to pull a short ball, but he got an edge through to John Simpson behind the stumps. 

George Drissell came to the crease as Jofra Archer began his first spell of the day, but he and de Leede managed to negate a four-over burst successfully. 

Durham broke the Sussex shackles as de Leede pulled back-to-back Sandhu balls to the boundary, but the Australian bounced back as Drissell pulled a short one straight to Fynn Hudson-Prentice who was running in from the boundary, which left Durham seven down. 

Things went from bad to worse for Durham as Sandhu got his fourth, removing Ben Raine for 10 as he chipped one straight to Tom Clark at cover. Then Potts didn’t last long as he edged a Robinson delivery behind to Simpson for two. 

Sussex then wrapped up the Durham first innings as Sandhu picked up the final wicket, with Sam Conners caught behind for seven. 

Sussex’s second innings got off to a bad start as Potts struck without a run on the board, with the England man getting Daniel Hughes for a two-ball duck as he chopped on to his off-stump. 

Durham got the Kookaburra ball talking as Ben Raine got Tom Clark for 10, with the Sussex number three edging behind to Ollie Robinson behind the stumps. Potts then got his second, bowling Tom Haines for 12 to leave Sussex in trouble. 

First innings centurion Coles and Danial Ibrahim soaked up some pressure as the task for Sussex changed from quick runs to survival. 

Two rain delays either side of seven deliveries from Conners and de Leede delayed Durham’s hunt for wickets, with an early tea taken. 

Coles, who batted so well on day one, flicked a Conners delivery off his legs for four and he followed that with a nice shot through third region off the bowling of de Leede. 

He then pulled a Conners delivery to the boundary, which continued his excellent match, but there was yet another interruption as the players went off for bad light, which preceded more rain. 

Coles resumed after a third delay with a crunching straight drive off Drissell, and he passed fifty for the second time in the match with it coming from 65 balls. 

The 21-year-old then lost his wicket as Raine bowled him for 53, but the players were off for bad light soon after and when the rain started again, play ended prematurely, with the game drifting towards a draw.

Liam O'Brien Stars as England Defeat India Again in Mixed Disability T20 Series

Sussex-born Liam O'Brien delivered a standout all-round performance to lead England Mixed Disability to a commanding 60-run victory over India, putting the hosts 2-0 up in the seven-match T20 series.

O'Brien was named Player of the Match after smashing a quickfire 55 and claiming 4-30 with the ball in a dominant display at Wormsley, Buckinghamshire.

Fellow Sussex player Alfie Pyle also made his mark, taking 1-30 following his own Player of the Match performance in the series opener.

Match Report

Dan Bowser and Liam O'Brien powered England Men's Mixed Disability to their second win from two games in their ground-breaking series against India.

O'Brien in particular enjoyed a day to remember, with an unbeaten 55 and figures of 4-27 earning him the Player of the Match award at picturesque Wormsley.

Devonian left-handed opener Dan Bowser had initially been the stand-out star of England's batting effort, making 83 from just 61 balls in a partnership 102 with O'Brien, but O'Brien's all-round heroics ultimately defined the day and the victory for Callum Flynn's team.

England's margin of victory was in the end very similar to that in their series opener at Taunton, and they'll be looking for more of the same in the third Vitality Mixed Disability IT20 at Lord's on Wednesday.

Bowser and Price put on 77 for the first wicket before Price and then Flynn fell in quick succession to bring around England's match-winning partnership.

It felt like a steep total for India to chase, and it proved to be the case. Five wickets down after 10 overs was never likely to be the foundation from which to tie the series at one apiece, and in truth there were few positives for the tourists, save some fighting resistance from Narenda Mangore.

England captain Callum Flynn said: "I am absolutely delighted for Liam. I've played with him for a long time and I know what a fantastic cricketer he is, but to see him do it on this stage with both bat and ball is a joy.

"Very few players deserve it more than him, he gives everything for the team and he's absolutely delighted. We're 2-0 up and it's a good start but it is only that, a start. We've got to build on this now at Lord's and stay totally focused on getting over the line to ultimately win the series."

The next fixture between the two sides - on Wednesday at Lord's - forms part of Cricket Disability Day, set to be the biggest ever one-off showcase of disability cricket. Hosted by the MCC, ECB and Lord's Taverners, the England game is the showpiece event amongst a host of other activities and sessions to showcase the progress disability cricket is making and the opportunities open to people living with a disability.

Smile Group Travel Named Official Overseas Travel Partner of Sussex Cricket

Sussex Cricket is pleased to announce a new long-term partnership with Smile Group Travel, who will serve as the club’s Official Overseas Travel Partner through at least 2028.

As well as being appointed to provide overseas group travel to the Club, Smile Group Travel will also partner with the Sussex Cricket Foundation.

Smile Group Travel will sponsor all secondary school cricket competitions for boys and girls that take place across the County for the duration of the contract.

Community Director for the Sussex Cricket Foundation, Gary Wallis-Tayler, said: “I am delighted to be working in partnership with Graeme and the team from Smile Group Travel. 

“Their support will enable us to continue providing schools across the county with competitive playing opportunities, for boys & girls of all abilities.

“Smile Group Travel will also work with us to help provide affordable sport tours across the UK and other areas of the globe, for our school & club network.”

Speaking on the agreement, Graeme Waker, Director of Smile Group Travel, said: “Smile are ecstatic to be working as the travel partner with Sussex again.  We have a long history in working with the club in organising 1st XI and Academy tours and we look forward to helping the club with future overseas tours.  

“Smile are experts in organising tours for all sports across the world. Cricket is a particular area of expertise. As well as a long history working with professional teams we can design and deliver the highest quality of tours for any group to anywhere that cricket is played and we look forward to working with groups across Sussex.”

The new collaboration formally brings together two organisations who have a long-standing working relationship.

Sam Graham, Director of Growth at Sussex Cricket, added: “It’s great to once again be working with Smile Group Travel, an organisation who leads the way in the organisation and management of sports tours across the world. 

“Smile Group are an extremely well established and respected tour provider within the industry, and we look forward to working together in the coming years. 

“I would also thank them for the support they are providing our charitable arm, the Sussex Cricket Foundation.”

About Smile Group Travel

Founded as Smile Caribbean Group Travel in 2009 by Director Graeme Walker, who started looking after touring groups whilst living in Barbados. Smile Group Travel provide high quality sports tours to over 70 long haul, short haul and UK destinations. 

Their expertise means that they are able to identify the very best ground agents in every location they send tours to, providing customers with the best accommodation, excursions, sports fixtures and overall experience.

A half-century from Colin Ackermann helped Durham fight back on day two of their Rothesay County Championship clash with Sussex after Jofra Archer picked up a wicket on his return to red ball cricket. 

James Coles picked up where he left off for Sussex in the morning and took his side to a competitive total of 361 all out, with him finishing unbeaten on 148.

Durham’s response against a Sussex bowling attack which included Archer, got off to a good start, making it to lunch without loss, but they lost skipper Alex Lees just after the break. 

Archer then came into the attack and struck during an exciting spell to leave Durham in a spot of bother in the afternoon. 

However, Durham bounced back in the evening through a partnership worth 76 between Ackermann and Graham Clark, but the loss of Ackermann with the last ball of the day gives Sussex the edge, with Durham on 249 for five and the deficit still 112.

Resuming on 322 for nine, unbeaten centurion Coles and number 11 Gurinder Sandhu were at the crease for Sussex. 

Coles continued to play nicely as he produced a delightful shot down the ground off the bowling of Bas de Leede. 

Coles then used his feet to launch one down the ground from George Drissell, but the spinner wrapped up the innings just three balls later, bowling Sandhu for eight, leaving Coles unbeaten on 148. 

Alex Lees and Emilio Gay were tasked with kicking off Durham’s response and they started in a serene manner. 

Archer then came into the attack and nearly had Gay with his first ball, but Lees was finding things a bit easier as he played a nice on-drive off the bowling of Sandhu which went to the boundary. 

Gay, who initially found life tough against Archer, managed to break the shackles with two boundaries, one through point region and the other off his legs. However, Sussex struck back after lunch as Lees went for 34 when he edged a delivery from Fynn Hudson-Prentice and John Simpson made no mistake behind the stumps. 

Hudson-Prentice continued to probe and offered few opportunities for run scoring as Will Rhodes and Gay consolidated after the wicket. 

Meanwhile, Archer gave Rhodes and Gay a working over with some short stuff, but the Durham batters weren’t falling for the short ball ploy. The England man changed plans and got that vital wicket as he trapped Gay in front for 37, prompting a big celebration from the 30-year-old. 

Archer’s second spell of six overs went for just eight runs, so Durham decided to take the game to Carson as Rhodes and Colin Ackermann picked up a couple of boundaries to relieve some pressure. 

Rhodes then played a glorious straight drive from a Robinson ball which went to the boundary, but he then chipped one straight to Daniel Hughes at cover for 24 to hand the economical Hudson-Prentice a second wicket of the day. 

That brought Durham’s OIlie Robinson to the crease before tea and he decided to take on Hudson-Prentice, picking up 11 runs from four balls, more than he’d gone for in his previous eight overs. 

Archer returned after tea, with Durham’s Robinson edging one which dropped just short of John Simpson, but he bounced back with two consecutive fours including a dab to third region. 

Ackermann then played a glorious cover drive off the bowling of Archer for four, but the fluent Robinson fell to Sandhu for 34 as he nicked one down the legside and Simpson produced an excellent diving catch to his left.

Graham Clark came to the crease and absorbed a bit of pressure before he started to put his foot to the accelerator with back-to-back pull shots from Hudson-Prentice going to the boundary and he followed that up with a cut shot for four. 

Ackermann joined Clark in the hunt for boundaries when he swept a Coles delivery to the rope and the number four passed fifty for the fourth time this season from 115 balls. 

Ackermann, who looked good throughout the innings, was then bowled by Sandhu for 65 with the final ball of the day, which leaves Durham five down while the deficit is still 112.