LV County Championship Division One, Scarborough
Sussex 398 & 333-6 dec drew with Yorkshire 388 & 312-6
By Jack Bradshaw
Sussex all but secured their Division One survival with a draw against relegation threatened Yorkshire in the County Championship at Scarborough.
Captain Michael Yardy struck a century in both innings of the match which never looked like finishing in a positive result for either side.
Yorkshire took the early initiative on day one after reducing Sussex to 27-3, but Yardy and wicket-keeper Ben Brown put on 198 for the fourth wicket and both hit hundreds as the visitors fought back to post 398.
In response, the hosts were pegged back as Wayne Parnell took two early wickets, but a brilliant 160 from Joe Root carried them to 388 and a first innings deficit of just 10.
With time running out in the game, Michael Yardy struck an impressive run-a-ball 121 as Sussex declared on 333-6 with the slim chance of forcing a win.
But Jacques Rudolph (120) and Sayers (84) shared an opening stand of 174 to quickly distinguish any faint hopes of a Sussex victory.
Badly in need of a win themselves, Yorkshire pushed hard to record an invaluable win but fell 32 runs short in a spirited chase.
The draw gave Sussex nine points and leaves them with a 25-point cushion over seventh place Yorkshire with three games remaining.
And the Sharks will be looking to secure survival against Durham when four-day action returns to Hove on Wednesday 31 August after they face India in a tour match.
