Northamptonshire Steelbacks 295-8 (50 overs)
Sussex Sharks 297-3 (46.5 overs)
Sussex Sharks win by seven wickets
Scottish international Charlie Tear blazed a record-breaking maiden List A hundred as Sussex Sharks raced to their second Metro Bank One Day Cup victory in three days.
They chased down Northamptonshire Steelbacks’ 295-8 in style with seven wickets and 19 balls to spare.
Tear served up a barrage of boundaries all around Wantage Road, smashing 23 fours and two sixes in his spectacular 159 off just 146 balls – the highest ever individual score for Sussex against Northamptonshire in List A cricket.
He shared a devastating opening stand of 216 off 202 balls with Tom Haines (76 off 81, nine fours and a six) – Sussex’s highest List A partnership for any wicket against Northamptonshire.
It was a day to forget for the Steelbacks with the ball, the bowling often wayward and with multiple errors in the field.
With the bat, James Sales narrowly failed to post another ton after his century in Northamptonshire’s victory over Durham on Friday, but his 98 (96 balls, eight fours, 1 six) was the backbone of their innings.
He shared a stand of 115 off 104 balls for the fourth wicket with Stuart van der Merwe who looked at home on his debut despite being dropped at slip first ball.
His 59 (60 balls, six fours and a six) was a proactive, confident innings from the 20-year-old, full of invention.
But with just 50 coming in the powerplay and Sales failing to kick on in the final overs, Northamptonshire’s total looked well below par.
Danny Lamb finished with two wickets but spinner Jack Carson’s miserly six-over spell deserved special mention.
Earlier Luke Procter (36) and Aadi Sharma (38) gave Northamptonshire a solid if unspectacular platform of 73 for the first wicket in 13.3 overs.
Sharma swept Carson straight to Archie Lenham at backward-square before Procter, who passed 1,000 List A runs, fell soon afterwards, giving leg-spinner Lenham a comfortable return catch.
Amid a miserly spell, Carson bowled 16 dot balls in 17 deliveries, conceding just one run, his initial six-over spell bringing one wicket for just 13 runs.
Northamptonshire attacked at the other end instead, targeting Lenham, Sales cutting for four and smashing over long-on.
Tim Robinson fell quickly in identical fashion to Sharma, sweeping round the corner to Lenham in spinner Bertie Foreman’s first over.
Foreman then nearly had van der Merwe first ball but Haines shelled a straightforward chance at slip, the ball running away for four. Unfazed, van der Merwe drove the unlucky bowler through the covers and began to accumulate.
Sales swept Carson over midwicket while van der Merwe sent one over extra cover for six. He scooped Lamb for four before sweeping Foreman to reach 50.
Even though van der Merwe upper cut to third where Lenham held an excellent tumbling catch, a big Northamptonshire total looked assured.
Sales twice crunched Foreman through extra cover and moved into the eighties in style, smashing Lenham straight into the top tier of the Turner Stand.
But Sussex did well to contain as Sales grew becalmed, scoring just 21 in the final 10 overs.
New batter George Bartlett counterattacked after being dropped at extra cover, hitting Lenham straight for six and taking three boundaries off a Crocombe over.
His luck ended when he was run out for a quickfire 28 (18 balls), Fynn Hudson-Prentice deflecting the ball on to the stumps in his follow-through.
It sparked a mini collapse, Northamptonshire losing four wickets in 19 balls. Lewis McManus and Dom Leech were bowled by Lamb and Hudson-Prentice respectively before Sales was agonisingly caught at cover.
In stark contrast, Sussex’s powerplay saw a wave of boundaries producing 80 runs in comparison to Northamptonshire’s 50 stage.
Tear was in full command. He played some textbook drives, cuts and clips off his legs but also attacked, pulling anything short and smashing over long-on before a beautiful straight drive took him to 50.
Haines too started to find the ropes even if he was fortunate to gather a six via a top-edge.
Indian legspinner Yuzvendra Chahal and debutant pace bowler Ben Whitehouse briefly stemmed the flow of runs, the youngster conceding just two off his first over.
But the scoring was relentless. Haines whipped one through the on-side to bring up Sussex’s 100 off 85 balls, while Tear deposited Chahal over long-on.
Tear continued to gather runs all around the wicket, a cover drive off Chahal bringing up his century off exactly 100 balls.
He pulled Whitehouse ferociously for four more and crunched him down the ground before tucking into a Dom Leech over which leaked 18 runs, including a straight six to bring up the 200 partnership.
Northamptonshire finally made the breakthrough in the 34th over when Haines hooked Whitehouse out to the sweeper on the legside boundary.
Tear motored on past 150, reaching the milestone by swotting Leech over midwicket for six. His long innings ended with the finishing line in sight, caught at backward point off Leech.
Tom Clark made 34 before he was bowled by Bartlett with five needed, John Simpson hitting six to wrap up the win.
…
Northamptonshire debutant Stuart van der Merwe said: “It was a day that I’ve always been looking forward to and I’m really ready chuffed to just make my debut. It obviously wasn’t the result we wanted but just very happy to be out there playing.
“It was great to have Broady (Justin Broad) present my cap. I know him from back home, obviously a South African mate, so yeah it was really good.
“He’s definitely someone that I look up to a lot, especially the way he’s gone about it (getting into county cricket), not the easiest way but, yeah, he’s got to where he wants to be.
“It was definitely a good platform to start (today). And then obviously it was quite nice to just contribute. That’s the first time I’ve batted with Salesy and a couple of the lads that obviously haven’t played much Twos stuff. But yeah, it was great just to be out there.
“I was born in South Africa and came over in 2021 and did sixth form year at boarding school. So yeah, it’s been pretty tough. That was down at Reed’s School in Surrey. And now I’m currently at Leeds University.”
On trialling for various counties and finally getting a contract for this competition, he said: “It’s definitely something I’ve been dreaming about my whole life. And, yeah, it’s not the easiest thing trialling around. You need a bit of luck, right time, right place definitely.
“It was quite a nice track to bat on. I think they just batted really well. Credit to Charlie today, he took the game away from us, but yeah, definitely a great wicket to bat on.
“I’m just buzzing to play. This was the biggest crowd I’ve ever played in front of. It was definitely very special to play in front of a crowd like that, especially when they’re behind you too. You can’t ask for more.”
…
Sussex opener Charlie Tear said: “We spoke in the morning as a group, as a batting unit, about wanting to play with freedom and intent from ball one. We’ve got naturally aggressive players and when we let ourselves play like that, I think we get the best from ourselves.
“The chase on Friday against Lancashire filled the team with confidence. I think the way Clarky and Hainesy have been playing set the intent.
“And I think new batters coming in are just going from ball one, starting as if they were already 20 or 30. And I think that just keeps the momentum going and as a bowling unit. It’s going to be difficult to bowl at us.
“Hainesy has masses of experience. We were just talking in the middle about plans and when to maybe go on the attack and when to just work it around. So, he helps hugely.
“I feel like I’ve been playing good cricket all year, and, yeah, it’s just nice to get an opportunity and take it really. That’s the most pleasing thing.
“I got off to a quicker start than I thought I probably would have today. That just happened naturally, and I thought I’ve got to keep going. But then once you get out of the power play, you go through the gears and play the situation.
“It was quite a good wicket. It didn’t spin loads, came onto the bat pretty nicely, a little bit two-paced at times. But a good wicket.
“I think we’re getting better each game, which is an exciting thing. That’s what you want to do in these sorts of tournaments. We’ll rest up now and then play Somerset at home. And yeah, we’re full of confidence.”
