Sussex 393 (104 overs)
Sussex (3 points) lead Surrey (3 points) by 393 runs
Charlie Tear made his highest first-class score and there were fifties for Oli Carter and John Simpson as Sussex edged an absorbing day against Surrey at Hove.
After Tuesday’s washout the chances of either side claiming the win which would put any lingering relegation concerns in the Rothesay County Championship to bed have decreased, but Sussex, who won the toss, will feel they are in better shape after Tear’s 89 underpinned their 393.
Both teams are playing two spinners but it wasn’t until after tea that there was any appreciable assistance. Leg-spinner Rahul Chahar and fellow Indian Mahipal Lomror (left-arm spin) claimed three wickets each and bowled 59 of the 104 overs for a combined return of 6 for 171, but batsmen dominated the day with Tear leading the way.
The 22-year-old caught the eye when he made 61 in a losing cause at the Oval in May and here he settled down for four hours of risk-free accumulation and allowed his partners, particularly Carter and Simpson, to play more aggressively.
He added 99 in 23 overs for the third wicket with Carter and 79 for the fifth in 20 overs with Simpson and at 270 for 4 Sussex were in a strong position before Chahar sparked a Surrey fightback.
Tear only hit four boundaries but in terms of holding the innings together he did a fine job, and it was a surprise when he tried to drive a ball from Chahar, who was into his 15th over, that pitched a yard outside off stump and the edge flew to backward point. No wonder he dragged himself reluctantly back to the pavilion to reflect on an opportunity missed.
Chahar struck again with a googly to beat Jack Leaning’s defensive shot and take out his off stump.
Then, with the new ball only six overs old, Chahar was brought back on and immediately pinned Jack Carson as he fatally played back.
Surrey had taken four wickets for 51 runs but Ari Karvelas and Sean Hunt hit 65 together for the ninth wicket before Karvelas fell lbw to Lormor and the innings ended when Jaydev Unadkat was stumped off the last ball of the day.
Injuries to Tom Clark and Dan Hughes meant the hosts fielded a rejigged top order with opener George Thomas, who is joining Worcestershire at the end of the season, making his Championship debut.
And he shaped up well, with seven of his eight scoring shots going to the boundary before he fenced outside off stump once too often at the persevering Dan Worrall and Dom Sibley held a low catch at slip.
Lomror came on after just 40 minutes but it was seam that did the trick again for Surrey, Matthew Fisher switched ends and struck immediately when Tom Haines offered a simple catch off a leading edge.
Either side of lunch the impressive Carter, in only his second Championship appearance of the season, refused to let the Surrey attack settle until Fisher, again benefitting from a change of ends, took his second return catch on the day with a low grab in his follow-through off Carter’s straight drive.
James Coles disappointingly missed Lomror’s full toss but Simpson was in attacking mode from the start as he passed 50 for the fifth time this season before Worrall knocked back his off stump with the new ball.
Charlie Tear said: “I just thought I would try to anchor the innings for the team really and if wickets did fall, I would be the man to try to get the new batters in so I was really pleased to bat for the amount of time I did.
“I try to bat similar to white-ball cricket so there’s not too much difference technically – it’s just about tempo and managing risks.
“I am more happy with how long I batted and the contribution I made than not making another 11 runs for a hundred.
“Oli Carter played really well and took the pressure off me. He started striking pretty quickly and it helped us.
“Hopefully, the pitch deteriorates tomorrow and we can get a few quick wickets but we’re really happy with 393.”
Surrey all-rounder Mahipal Lomror said: “The wicket is really good for batting. We had to stick to our plans for as long as we could so to get them all out right at the end of the day was a decent effort by the bowlers.
“The wicket is quite slow and even balls which turn, it’s not sharp turn, so it’s manageable for the batters. It might turn more by the fourth day but I don’t think it’s going to change much.
“I am used to bowling with Rahul (Chahar). We’ve played in the same teams since under-14s and he is a world-class bowler. He is bowling really well and it’s good for me to have someone of his calibre at the other end.”
