Hampshire 191 (60.4 overs) and 220 (85.5 overs)
Sussex 159 (49.5 overs) and 134 (56.5 overs)
Hampshire (19 points) beat Sussex (3 points) by 118 runs
Hampshire recorded only their second championship win of the season when they beat title-chasing Sussex by 118 runs inside three days at Hove this afternoon (Sunday 21 June).
Sussex, chasing their fifth victory in eight games, required 253 for victory after bowling out Hampshire for 220 and were favourites when they reached 64-1 at lunch.
Hampshire were once again looking to veteran fast bowler Kyle Abbott to do something heroic. But instead it was fellow fast bowler Eddie Jack who seized the day.
With figures of 4-36, he achieved his best return in his 13th first-class match. And he was well supported by off-spinner Felix Organ who took three wickets.
The sunny conditions favoured the batters, unlike the previous day, but the slight variable bounce in the pitch always offered encouragement to the bowlers and, in challenging circumstances, Sussex didn’t have a batsman capable of taking the initiative.
Hampshire had started the third day on 206-9, a lead of 238, with last pair Abbott and Jack having already added 33 for the 10th wicket.
They added 14 more runs. Sussex captain Tom Haines took the new ball after 10 deliveries but neither Jaydev Unadkat nor Tom Price could find much swing or seam movement.
After just two overs from the sea end, Price was replaced by Jack Carson and with his fifth delivery Carson dismissed Jack, who was caught just inside the long-on boundary by Sean Hunt.
Sussex started their pursuit amid great tension, with the result of crucial importance to both sides. Every run was cheered by a large crowd who enjoyed free admission. It included a fair contingent of Hampshire supporters.
The visitors broke through in the third over when Haines was LBW to Abbott for a duck. But left-handers Dan Hughes and former Hampshire player Tom Alsop swung the match Sussex’s way.
Runs were hard to come by but then Hughes drove Jack for three fours in an over, through the covers, straight and through midwicket.
At lunch, Sussex looked the better bet, with Hampshire hopes resting primarily on Abbott. But it was Jack, charging in from the sea end, who swung the match towards the visiting side with two wickets in consecutive overs.
At 67, he had Hughes LBW as the batsman attempted to flick a full length delivery through midwicket, ending a partnership worth 58 runs.
Then, without addition, he had Jack Leaning caught behind for a pair, the ball just carrying to former Sussex captain Ben Brown.
At the other end, Tom Alsop was playing with calm assurance. But when he had scored 37, he cut Organ to backward-point where Scott Currie claimed the catch. Alsop didn’t move and he was eventually given not out by the square-leg umpire.
