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Sussex and Kent will clash against each other in the sixth round of the County Championship, starting from May 13.
Sussex and Kent will face off against each other in a Group 3 match, starting from May 13. Kent are currently placed last on the points table after securing just 24 points in their first four matches. Kent have lost three matches and have drawn the other game. On the other hand, Sussex are currently fourth in the league after having played five games.
Sussex have secured 51 points in their five matches so far, losing three games. They have drawn and won one game each in the competition. Their last game was against Northamptonshire, where they were beaten by a huge margin. Sussex lost by an innings and 120 runs, as their poor form continues this season. They were bowled out for a score of just 106 runs in the first innings. In response, Northamptonshire scored 441 runs, with Saif Zaib smashing an astonishing knock.
In the second innings, Sussex could score only 215 runs and were bowled out under 65 overs. Kent’s last game was against Glamorgan, where they were defeated by a margin of 10 wickets. Kent scored 138 runs in the first innings, whereas Glamorgan managed to score 197 runs. In the second innings, Kent were bowled out for a score of just 74 balls, leaving just 17 runs to chase for the opposition.
Kent have suffered heavy defeats so far this season. They were defeated by Yorkshire by a margin of 200 runs, and lost to Lancashire by an innings and five runs. Their only draw came against Northamptonshire in the first round itself.
Key Players
Ollie Robinson has been a standout bowler for Sussex this season. He has picked up 25 wickets in his four matches so far, at an average of 13.80. He is the third-highest wicket-taker of the tournament so far. In the last game against Northamptonshire, he picked up a five-wicket haul. With the bat, he played two crucial knocks. In the first innings, he scored an unbeaten knock of 49 runs. In the second innings, he scored 23 runs. Against Yorkshire, he picked up five wickets combined over the course of two innings.
Jack Carson has been impressive this season, picking up 18 wickets in his five matches so far, at an average of 23.39. Carson could not manage to pick up a single wicket in the last game but will hope to bounce back against Kent. He was the standout bowler against Yorkshire, picking up six wickets over the course of two innings. He picked up a five-wicket haul in the second innings and bowled almost 40 overs.
Daniel Bell-Drummond is one of the most experienced batsmen in County Cricket. The Kent skipper has over 6,000 runs to his name in this first-class cricket, which includes 11 hundred and 50 half-centuries. The opener has not been in his best form this season and could manage to score just 44 runs in two innings against Glamorgan last time around. He scored a century in the second innings against Lancashire. Apart from his knock of 114 runs against Lancashire, he has failed to even score a half century in the competition.
Joe Denly is another experienced batter in the Kent squad. He has over 12,000 runs in first-class cricket, and has played over 200 matches. Denly has 29 hundreds to his name and 63 half-centuries to his name so far in first-class cricket. However, he has failed to hit top form so far this season. Against Glamorgan, he managed to score just 10 runs in his two innings, which includes a duck in the first innings. Against Lancashire, he managed to score 4 and 31 runs in the first and second innings, respectively. Moreover, Denly can also roll his arm over if needed and can be a handy bowling option.
Prediction
Both teams are battling to survive in the tournament, with Kent reeling at the bottom of Group 3. Sussex will come into the match on the back of three consecutive heavy defeats. Sussex’s batting order has failed to perform so far this tournament and managed to score just over 300 runs in their last match over the course of two innings.
As for Kent, their batting unit has also failed to perform so far. The likes of Zak Crawley, Joe Denly and Daniel Bell Drummond are still to hit top form. The bowling unit have also failed to deliver this season, and they have just managed to get 24 points from their five matches.
Sussex are the favourites to win their clash against Kent, given that they have a well-balanced team. Travis Head is another dangerous batter in Sussex’s batting lineup, but he is yet to get among the runs so far.
