Sussex 156 (47.4 overs) and 207 (61.5 overs)
Warwickshire 161 (47.3) and 206-9 (53.1 overs)
Warwickshire (19 points) beat Sussex (3 points) by one wicket
Chris Woakes steered Warwickshire over the line as they strengthened their Rothesay County Championship title bid with a thrilling one-wicket victory over fellow challengers Sussex in a magnificent match at Edgbaston.
Trailing by five runs on the first innings, Sussex were bowled out for 207 in their second. Tom Haines compiled a skilful 67 from 114 balls.
But nobody else passed 22 against a seam attack which worked perfectly as a unit. Ethan Bamber took three wickets and Ed Barnard, Michael Booth and Woakes two apiece.
A target of 203 was tricky on a pitch on which only one batter passed 50 in the first three innings – but sure enough, in a wonderful finale, Warwickshire edged to 206-9.
Sean Hunt bowled superbly to take 5-65 (9-95 in the match) but Vansh Jani (62 from 82 – his maiden first-class fifty) and Dan Mousley (58 from 83) scored crucial runs before Woakes (23 not out from 43) saw his side to a nerve-jangling victory.
The Bears’ win sets up a mouth-watering clash with reigning champions Nottinghamshire at Edgbaston next week.
Meanwhile, Sussex, who have done so well to build a title challenge in light of all their off-field turbulence, remain in what is a fascinatingly tight title race, but really need to beat Somerset at Hove.
When Sussex resumed on the third morning, on 84-3, James Coles’s lean spell continued as, having eked seven runs from 48 minutes, he left his leg-stump exposed and Woakes knocked it out.
Haines remained solid and reached the game’s first half-century (from 93 balls) but Warwickshire’s bowling depth in this match showed its value.
With Woakes, Bamber and Booth having taken just one wicket in the first hour, Olly Hannon-Dalby and Barnard came on to add three more.
John Simpson edged Hannon-Dalby to wicketkeeper Alex Davies and Barnard dislodged Haines, who edged to second slip, and Danial Ibrahim (match substitute for the injured Fynn Hudson-Prentice) LBW.
Bamber chipped in after lunch as Henry Crocombe and Scott Carson perished to fatal outside-edges. When Woakes pinned Jaydev Unadkat LBW, Warwickshire’s target was 203 in a minimum of 153 overs.
Sussex needed to strike early and they did as Hunt hit Rob Yates’s leg stump, Zen Malik edged Unadkat behind and Crocombe ousted Will Young LBW.
Mousley and Jani tilted the game their side’s way with a stand of 107 in 24 overs before Hunt powered Sussex back into the match with three wickets in 11 balls.
Mousley skied a big drive to mid-off, Barnard edged behind and Jani was caught at second slip by Tom Clark – a brilliant take in moderate light.
When Alex Davies edged Crocombe to slip, suddenly, the last three wickets had to find 47 in murky light against an attack with its tail up.
Woakes and Booth found 23 before the latter played on to Hunt to give the bowler a richly deserved five-for.
In front of an enthralled crowd, Woakes and Bamber, playing and missing frequently, added another 23 before, with the scores level, Bamber edged Crocombe to the wicketkeeper.
Amid glorious, excruciating tension Hannon-Dalby and Woakes took their time – 13 dot balls – before Woakes edged Unadkat for the winning four.
Afterwards, Woakes said: “That chase was always going to be difficult and, at one stage, we were in a position where we could have probably cruised home a little bit easier than we did.
“But that’s the game – pressure builds and situations change. But we got over the line and that’s what matters.
“We did bowl well throughout the game as a unit. I thought we could have bowled a little bit better at times. There were a lot of leg-byes where we just bowled a little bit too straight.
“But we’ve got a good unit. We keep coming and we rotate well and bowl in partnerships. That is a good sign going into the last five games but there are things we can do better.
“I was pleased with the way I bowled. I haven’t bowled with a red ball really since the start of May so to come in and bowl well was nice.
“It is always good to get wickets and, most importantly, big wickets. When you get their top order out, it’s always a good feeling. I felt in pretty good rhythm.
“We’ve bowled on every day of this match so the body is a little bit sore but we rest up and go again next week.”
Sussex head coach Paul Farbrace said: “It was a fantastic game of cricket. I can’t fault our effort and commitment though, obviously, when you get that close, it is disappointing to lose the game.
“Overheads played a big part, certainly yesterday, in terms of dismissals. The sun came out today and, at times, batting was a bit easier.
“In the 19 overs before tea today, we bowled too many loose balls and that got them going. Vansh Jani and Dan Mousley batted really well then Dan got himself out and that put us back in the game.
“There were a couple of key periods that we can look back on. At the end of Warwickshire’s first innings, we gave them 60 runs and that was costly because at one stage we were looking at having a 30-run lead.
“Then that period before tea today, that was a tough period in terms of our bowling but the fightback after tea was absolutely superb.
“It was a brilliant game of cricket. Of course, you want to win every game that you play but, in terms of our commitment and effort over the three days, it’s been outstanding.”
