Sussex slump to Somerset defeat – but One Day Cup hopes live on

The hosts slumped from 60-1 to 60-5 at The 1st Central County Ground and never fully recovered, ending up being dismissed for 153 as Somerset’s Tom Lammonby (5-20) claimed his first professional five-wicket haul.

After losing Tom Haines to JT Langridge’s first delivery, Sussex were in the driving seat chasing 244 with Charlie Tear (16) and Tom Clark (34) going along nicely at 60-1.

Lammonby’s triple wicket maiden then threw the game wide open once more, as he had Tear caught by Fin Hill at cover, before trapping both Fynn Hudson-Prentice and captain John Simpson LBW for ducks.

The departure of Tom Clark in the next over saw a fourth wicket in eight balls without a run being scored, with Langridge claiming a simple catch at mid on off the bowling of Kasey Aldridge.

A 44 run partnership for the seventh wicket between Oli Carter (19) and a fluent looking Jack Carson briefly gave the home faithful hope, but the game was gone when Carson pulled Langridge to Thomas Rew at mid-wicket.

All that was left was for Kian Roberts to pick up a maiden List A wicket by dismissing Carter and for Lammonby to complete his five-wicket haul by removing Henry Crocombe and Sean Hunt.

Somerset had earlier dug themselves out of their own hole to reach 243, before being dismissed in the 48th over.

Hunt (3-35) removed both Somerset openers for ducks, including strangling Archie Vaughan down the leg side from the first ball of the match, before Sussex chipped away to reduce Somerset to 82 - 5.

Half-centuries from youngsters Josh Thomas (50) and Hill (55) under pressure guided Somerset past 200, alongside some aggression from Roberts (28).

Although their tail fell away and Aldridge was the last man dismissed attempting the reverse ramp by Crocombe (3 - 47), their 243 ultimately proved more than enough.

Somerset’s 90 run victory saw them move onto 16 points, four clear of Sussex, who remain in fifth and will need to win both of their remaining games, with results going their way, to qualify for the knock-out stages.

Sharks bowler Sean Hunt admitted the defeat to Somerset was “hugely disappointing” as the side let an excellent position slip to dent their Metro Bank One-Day Cup qualification hopes.

Knowing the importance of the contest to their chances of knockout round qualification with just two matches left afterwards, Sussex were in control at the halfway stage at Hove.

They had dismissed Somerset for what appeared to be a below-par total of 243, and after having the visitors 21-3 and 82-5, could have done even better.

After making it to 60-1 in response, their batting was thereafter miserable, however, with Somerset opening batsman Tom Lammoby taking a first career five-fer – including a three-wicket maiden over – to dismiss the Sharks for just 153.

Hunt – the hero of a dramatic win over Lancashire Lightning the week prior and the taker of fantastic figures of 3-35 in this game – admitted that it was a serious setback.

“Especially after two great results last week, two big chases, I think [it was] hugely disappointing,” said the 23-year-old. “After carrying that momentum in thinking, ‘Win two out of three games and we get a quarter final place’, it's disappointing.

“There’s a lot of learning to be done from this game. And then [we need to be] ready to put it right on Sunday.”

On a serene day in Hove, Sussex took great credit from their bowling performance, with Hunt taking a first-ball wicket by drawing Archie Vaughan into a tickle down the leg side and then tempting Lammonby into an errant fend at a wideish delivery.

The former Surrey seamer also removed the form batsman for Somerset – Josh Thomas – with another catch flying to wicket-keeper John Simpson, while fellow seamers Henry Crocombe (3-47) and Fynn Hudson-Prentice (2-35) also did their bit.

Although Sussex then lost Tom Haines early, Charlie Tear and Tom Clark looked set to continue their form from a seven-wicket thrashing of Northamptonshire Steelbacks as they batted beautifully. Tear played an errant shot in the 11th over to find Fin Hill at point, though and the slide from 60-1 to 153 all out began.

“It's a situation that you probably don't really see much, where we've lost four wickets in eight balls,” said Hunt. “So it's just [about] people understanding what they need to do in the situation, how they should play it differently next time.”

Despite the result, and the manner of Sussex’s demise, there remains optimism in the Sharks camp about their remaining two matches. In those two – against Group B leaders Yorkshire and fellow qualification contenders Warwickshire – Sussex realistically need two wins and for other results to go their way, but they are not yet out of it.

“There’s still a lot of confidence,” said Hunt. “We've had about three great chases, and I think there's nothing stopping us from putting in two more good performances. I think the confidence is still there. We're still going to set out to win every game.”

While Hunt was there at the start and the end of the match – taking Vaughan’s wicket and then being the last wicket to fall, the same could be said for Lammonby.

After a three-ball duck, the opener then made history with his first-ever five-fer in any form of professional cricket. “I’m buzzing. After getting out third ball for a duck, I wasn’t really expecting too much from the day,” said the Somerset man.

“But I got the opportunity to get a few overs with a new-ish ball. It swung around early doors which helped me, as a left-arm swing bowler. I got lucky with the first one and then I found my rhythm a little bit more. I was very pleased to pick up my first five-for. It’s a pretty cool and pretty special moment.”

Picking up on a theme of the competition that has also applied to Sussex players like Clark and Hudson-Prentice, Lammonby mused on how the format allows all key skills to shine.

“The great thing about this one-day comp is that it gives me the opportunity, as an all-rounder, to bowl a bit more, even though my main role is with the bat. Getting more bowling opportunities is fantastic and helps me learn more about my bowling and the different roles I have to play within the team.”

Despite the defeat, Sussex can take some positives, with the form of Hunt being foremost amongst them.

With the left-arm seamer having spent four months out of action after picking up career-best match figures of 9-76 in April against Somerset, it was a relief to just be back on the field.

“It was all quite emotional [when the injury happened], and then realising that I wasn’t going to be able to play cricket for three or four months. We knew that pretty much a few days later.

“But we knew I was going to come back, so I was just happy to be back out there today.”

Hunt added that his plan now is to be involved in the final two One-Day Cup matches, before an all-important end to the County Championship season with three games in September.

“I want to pick up where I left off with the red ball, which is going to be quite hard, but they’re three important games for us,” said Hunt. “We want to win all three. Everyone's really, really looking forward to the challenge, because we know we play well at home. We’ve got two home games, so that's our advantage. Everyone's excited.”