Van Zyl century puts Sussex in command at Sophia Gardens
A HUNDRED from Stiaan van Zyl and a career best 97 from George Garton led the way for Sussex who recovered from a middle order collapse to lead Glamorgan by 196 runs at the end of day two of their LV=Insurance County Championship match in Cardiff.
Sussex continued their excellent start to their first innings with Aaron Thomason and Tom Haines setting a platform for Sussex who were 211 for one at lunch.
Three wickets for seven runs meant that Glamorgan had given themselves an opening to get back into the match but first van Zyl and then Garton took Sussex up to their opponents’ total and beyond.
Sussex made serene progress in the opening session, the only moment of success for Glamorgan was a stunning caught and bowled from Michael Hogan to dismiss Thomason for 67. As has so often been the case, Hogan was the pick of the Glamorgan bowlers and he was the one man to cause real trouble for Sussex.
It was Hogan who brought Haines’ innings to an end when he trapped him lbw just after lunch. He could have had a second wicket in the same over if Nick Selman could have held on to a sharp chance at second slip to dismiss Tom Clark.
Clark made 19 before he drove a ball into the off side to give James Weighell a catch off Dan Douthwaite. Sussex captain Ben Brown went to the very next ball when he had a big swish at a wide ball and was caught behind.
When Delray Rawlins played around a straight ball from Callum Taylor for two Sussex had stumbled from 254 for two to 261 for five.
While all of this was happening van Zyl was imperious, recording the 28th hundred of his career. He was brutal on anything over-pitched but played the drive one too many times and was well caught by Chris Cooke off the bowling of Timm van der Gugten for 113.
With van Zyl gone Glamorgan had a chance to wrap up the Sussex innings but Garton and Ollie Robinson took the game away from them as they built a huge lead.
Garton was denied his maiden hundred when he was trapped lbw by Hogan but he played his part in a fine Sussex effort that saw them reach 481 for nine at the close with Robinson undefeated on 67.