Nottinghamshire 240 (84.4 overs)
Sussex 308-6 (97.5 overs)
Sussex (5 points) lead Nottinghamshire (2 points) by 68 runs with 4 first innings wickets remaining
Tom Clark’s 89 and fifties from Charlie Tear and Tom Price frustrated title-chasing Nottinghamshire on the second day at Hove.
After Notts had been dismissed for 240, it was Sussex who picked up the only batting points so far in this round of Division One matches as they responded with 308-6.
Their tally was built on a century stand for the third wicket between Clark and Tear and Price’s unbeaten 56.
For Notts it was a frustrating day. While title rivals Warwickshire were beating Essex in two days at Chelmsford and Somerset made progress in their game against Yorkshire, they have only picked up two bonus points so far.
And Sussex could have been in an even better position had there not been a few soft dismissals in their top order.
Clark gave away his wicket on 89 when he slashed at a long hop well outside off stump from Brett Hutton and looked mortified as the ball crashed into his stumps off a thick inside edge. He couldn’t quite believe what he’d done as he dragged himself back to the dressing room.
But the left-hander’s excellent stand of 132 in 33 overs with Tear helped shape the day. Pitches at Hove tend to be at their best for batting on days two and three and they have given their side the chance to build a decent lead and put the champions under pressure.
Replying to 240, Sussex openers Tom Haines and George Thomas made a solid start and Haines was soon into his stride with successive fours through the covers off Indian seamer Mukesh Kumar.
But the Sussex captain was guilty of a preventable dismissal when he flicked a length ball from Olly Stone to mid-wicket where Ben Slater held a good diving catch.
It was 35-2 when Thomas played all around a straight one from Tom Giles which swung a touch but for the next 33 overs Clark and Tear prospered.
Tear took successive boundaries off Stone to bring up the century partnership and Clark nonchalantly flicked Giles off his legs for a six to take him to his fifth fifty of an injury-ravaged season.
Tear drove Kumar through the covers to raise the hundred stand and, while he was content to soak up pressure at one end, Clark continued to attack fluently, hitting 11 fours.
But with a century there for the taking, he gave it away somewhat and when Oli Carter was also out cheaply, flicking Stone to mid-wicket, Nottinghamshire sensed an opportunity.
Tear spent 20 minutes on 49 before taking a single off Liam Patterson-White to reach his second successive Championship fifty after lodging a career-best 89 against Surrey last week.
But almost immediately he was bowled by a superb delivery by the left-arm spinner which turned sharply from a leg-stump line to hit middle and off.
Sussex still trailed by 42 at that stage but John Simpson and Price steadied things down, although wicketkeeper Mitch Hayes missed a stumping chance which reprieved Simpson on 31 off Patterson-White when Sussex were still in arrears.
The lead was 18 and the sixth-wicket stand worth 60 when Hutton went wide of the crease to angle one through Simpson’s defences.
But Price progressed to his fifty and took his side past 300 – and a second batting point – with successive boundaries as he and Jack Carson saw Sussex through to stumps, although Carson was badly missed by Mitchell off Mukesh Kumar on 27.
Sussex’s Tom Clark said: “I missed the last game but I wanted to come out again and be nice and positive which I feel is when I have played my best cricket this year.
“It was nice to help get the team into a decent position but frustrating to get out when I did, which was similar to the Somerset game. I felt good and enjoyed it.
“Charlie (Tear) is a class player and is calm and knows what he is doing. If the bad ball was there, we had to put it away to put the pressure back.
“We know we are a good side and, hopefully, we can extend that in the morning and put ourselves in a really strong position to win the game.”
Nottinghamshire bowling coach Ant Botha said: “It was a tough batting day yesterday and today the conditions were a lot better.
“But there were periods in the first and second sessions when we didn’t create enough pressure, bowl in partnerships or hold ourselves to our high standards.
“Olly Stone didn’t bowl with much luck and Brett Hutton put in a good shift but collectively we didn’t quite gel for long enough.
“However, overall, we had a decent day and we’re certainly not out of the contest. Hopefully, we can eat into Sussex’s lower order, bat very well and put the Sussex boys under pressure on the last day.”
