Rain washes out final day as Thomas takes positives from draw

FREQUENT heavy showers killed off any prospect of a positive result from Sussex’s visit to Leicestershire in the Vitality County Championship, with no play possible on the final day of their Division Two clash, writes

Skipper John Simpson’s maiden double century had put Sussex in a strong position on day three, which ended with Leicestershire 270 in arrears at 86 for one in their second innings after Sussex had declared at 694 for nine just after tea, a lead of 356 on first innings.

But after a saturated outfield delayed the start on day four, the combination of more showers and the safety issues raised by trying to remove the covering sheets in winds gusting to gale force gave umpires James Middlebrook and Paul Pollard little option but to abandon the match as a draw shortly before 1pm.

It means both sides have two draws from two matches so far, with Sussex the more frustrated, having seen a winning position come to nothing against Northamptonshire at Hove last week, with weather again having the last word.

Sussex take 14 points from this match, giving them 29 from two, with Leicestershire taking 12 to swell their early-season total to 25.

Leicestershire head coach Alfonso Thomas, below, said: “It was a good toss to win. They won the toss and put us in and we probably would have bowled first as well.

“But then we had a good start with the bat but we never cashed in.

“We probably left about 100-plus runs out there. With this ball 330 on that pitch was probably the equivalent of about 250 in a normal situation, so I would have liked anything 400-plus to be in the game.

“We knew it would be hard work for the bowlers.

“They stuck at it well for a long period of time but they were probably a little bit undercooked after the pre-season we have had, not the best of pre-seasons.

“At times we were good but then their batters showed us how to cash in.

“That was something we’ve spoken about after the game, making sure as a batter when you get the opportunity you take the whole pie and turn a good start into a big score, whereas we’re just nibbling at it a little bit at the moment. “We’ve missed out on opportunities to cash in in both our first two games, but we’ll learn from that.

“There are a lot of positives and learnings to take forward. “Rishi (Patel) probably should have kicked on a little bit more after getting to 80-odd and Trevaskis had a good game on debut, showing what he could do with the bat and getting a lot of overs under his belt.”

Chris Wright, Leicestershire’s leading wicket-taker in recent seasons, is currently absent for “personal reasons”.

The veteran seamer was due to join Sussex at the end of last season, only to call off the move for family reasons.

Thomas denied that any breakdown in his relationship with Wright was behind his absence from the team.

“We are constantly talking to Wrighty. He is in a good place and we will hopefully have news on his possible return sooner rather than later,” said Thomas.

“It is tough what he has been going through and all we can do as a club is support him.

“I know there have been a few rumours floating around that I might have fallen out with Wrighty but I can categorically say that is not the case.

“There is nothing more to this story other than the fact that Wrighty is just going through a personal struggle at the moment.”

Meanwhile, Josh Hull will make his return from injury during the Second Eleven Championship (SEC) opener against Worcestershire starting today in Kibworth.

The 19-year-old has missed Leicestershire’s first two Vitality County Championship fixtures after suffering a side strain in the latter stages of pre-season.

Hull travelled with the squad to Yorkshire for the Foxes’ opening fixture at Headingley to continue his rehabilitation with the club’s sports science and medicine department, increasing his bowling intensity across the four days.

The 6ft 7in bowler starred in his maiden professional season last summer after graduating through Leicestershire’s academy.

The left-armer debuted in all formats and picked up 32 wickets, while he famously bowled the matchwinning last over in the Foxes’ Metro Bank One Day Cup final triumph.