Durham 352-5 (50 overs)
Sussex 280 (43.5 overs)
Durham (4 points) beat Sussex (0 points) by 72 runs
A magnificent century from Alex Lees helped Durham to continue their winning start in the Metro Bank One Day Cup as they beat the Sussex Sharks by 72 runs.
Durham’s innings was anchored by Lees who displayed a mix of patience and brutal hitting on his way to 132.
And he was well supported by Graham Clark and Ben Stokes who both made enterprising half-centuries in a total of 352 for five.
Sussex’s chase was headlined by an excellent century from Charlie Tear but it wasn’t enough for the visitors as a Will Rhodes five-wicket haul restricted Sussex to 280 all out, 72 runs short of Durham’s total.
Durham elected to bat first at the toss and their innings got off to a solid start through Clark and Lees in the powerplay. The Durham pair continued to pick up runs and Clark picked up his 10th List A fifty.
Sussex then found a much-needed breakthrough as Clark chipped a Jack Carson delivery straight to mid-off. However, Lees remained at the crease and he passed fifty.
England Test opener Emilio Gay joined Lees at the crease and looked to be positive while Lees continued to score boundaries.
Gay was then caught behind off the bowling of Carson and that brought Stokes in to bat. Lees then picked up his eighth Durham List A century – a new club record.
But he had to depart for 132 as the opener launched a Nantes Oosthuizen ball straight to long-off.
Stokes then continued Lees’s work as he hammered one down the ground for six. The former England captain passed fifty for the second consecutive match.
Fynn Hudson-Prentice then got Colin Ackermann caught and bowled and Ollie Robinson soon followed at the hands of Freddie Price. But Stokes finished unbeaten on 73 as Durham set Sussex 353 to win.
The visitors’ chase got off to a good start, with Tear and George Thomas making the most of some loose Durham bowling in the powerplay to find the boundary regularly.
The opening pair’s partnership passed 100 but Durham were convinced they had Tear after he chipped a Kasey Aldridge delivery in the direction of Gay at midwicket although the Durham fielder didn’t catch it cleanly.
However, Rhodes dismissed Thomas in the next over as the opener chipped one to the fielder at cover and Durham got their second soon after as Shafiqullah Ghafari got Tom Price LBW.
Tear was joined by Danial Ibrahim and they were reined in during the middle overs by the Durham bowlers. Tear then got his second List A century but Ibrahim fell at the hands of Aldridge as Durham reeled Sussex in once again.
Tear then lost another partner as Aldridge removed Jack Leaning. Rhodes then popped up with the vital wicket of Tear before Minto removed Hudson-Prentice as Durham closed in on victory.
Rhodes dismissed Carson for his third wicket before Minto picked up his second. Rhodes then wrapped up a five-wicket haul with the final two wickets.
Sussex head coach Paul Farbrace said: “We lost a couple of soft wickets in the middle and from experienced players but there’s a lot of good from today.
“I thought we bowled nicely against a fantastic Durham batting line-up. I’m really pleased with the first half of it. The second half, Charlie Tear, fantastic hundred, he played brilliantly.
“It’s all about opportunities. Can you take them? Can you show that you deserve to play more first-class cricket because a lot of them haven’t played.
“Today we’ve got two debutants as well so I’m really pleased with what they’ve done. But, equally, I don’t want them to accept that losing is ok.
“It was an excellent cricket pitch, really good pitch. Batsmen were able to play their shots and trust the bounce. In the end the best team have won the game.”
Lees said: “I’m delighted with the result. Early doors, me and Graham, it was probably a little bit trickier than we’d envisaged. Luckily we got through that and we put a great number on the board.”
The hosts face challenges when Sussex went in to bat. Lees said: “That first 10 overs, I think the guys will be pretty honest about it, I think it was pretty underwhelming in truth.
“We let them get to 70 without really trying but, to then get a grip of the game, for Minty to come back and bowl pretty nice was testament to him.”
Lees also spoke about not being captain in the 50-over format, saying: “We’d spoken about having a fresh voice in the One Day Cup.
“Kasey (Aldridge) has got great leadership credentials. He’s an obvious leader in the dressing room. He’s very calm even though he’s quite an inexperienced player.”
