Sussex enjoy their return to Division One
On their first day back in the top flight, Sussex recovered brilliantly from a poor start to score 386-5. They owed their total to assured centuries from Tom Clark and John Simpson.
Whilst Sussex will look to add plenty more tomorrow, Warwickshire’s batters will also hope to cash in on an easy-paced pitch, so a draw looks to be the most likely outcome. Today, Warwickshire will take some limited comfort from the excellent opening spell bowled by Ethan Bamber and the steady, well controlled bowling of 18 year old Taz Ali.
Because of injuries and the close season departures of Will Rhodes and Michael Burgess, it was very much a new look Warwickshire side. Kai Smith and Taz Ali were making their first class debuts whilst Hamza Shaikh and Michael Booth had just four first class appearances each. In addition, Vishwa Fernando and Ethan Bamber were making their Bears debuts.
Sussex, put in to bat on a pitch with a tinge of green about it, made a lively start, with Tom Haines taking advantage of the short boundary and some loose bowling by Fernando. Ethan Bamber bowled a tighter line and length and was rewarded when he trapped Haines lbw for 17.
There have been more distinguished debut spells for the Bears than Fernando’s threeovers for 27 runs, but at the other end Bamber trapped Hughes lbw for 19 and then had Tom Alsop taken at slip by Rob Yates for 0, leaving Sussex on 40-3. At the end of his first spell for the Bears, Bamber had figures of 7-5-8-3.
Tom Clark and James Coles had to work hard to establish themselves against Ed Barnard and Michael Booth, but persevered and made it through to lunch at 88-3. Then, in theafternoon they consolidated Sussex’s recovery without too many alarms. Their stand had reached 121 and Coles had just passed 50 when he totally mis-cued, skying to backward point to give leg spinner Taz Ali his first ever first-class wicket. To equal the record haul for a Warwickshire leg spinner (Eric Hollies), he only needs another 2321
scalps.
The ever-reliable John Simpson settled in very quickly and he and Clark saw Sussex through to tea at 232-4 with Clark on 72. After the interval, the stand continued. The Warwickshire bowlers were steady, with the exception of Rob Yates whose four overs cost 31 runs, but none of them were very threatening and the early life in the pitch seemed to have dissipated in the unlikely Birmingham heat. With the short boundary on the Pershore Road side of the ground and a dry, fast outfield, Sussex maintained a scoring rate of around four an over.
With a boundary off seventh bowler Dan Mousley, Clark reached a splendid hundred from 223 balls with 15 fours. The new ball had little impact and the double century partnership came up, only for Clark to edge behind off Barnard, to depart for an excellent career best140, scored off 279 balls, with 19 fours and a six.
There was time for John Simpson to reach his own hundred, scored off just 126 balls
with 14 fours and a six before Sussex retired for the day on 386-5. They will surely have
a minimum of 500 in their sights tomorrow.
