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Lewry injury sours Sussex's easy victory

Sussex 279 & 198 Kent 185 & 159 Sussex win by 133 runs

David Llewellyn
Saturday 03 May 2003 00:00 BST
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The timing was cruel. Within minutes of Mushtaq Ahmed wrapping things up for Sussex the widely forecast rain and gales arrived on the South Coast. Far too late to save Kent, though. They had already been blown to pieces by James Kirtley's six wicket haul – his best for a couple of years – and, it has to be said, some poor batting.

Indeed, Kent might be permitted to lament "Alas Smith and Jones" given what happened to their key batsmen Ed Smith and Geraint Jones in the fateful 39th over (bowled by Kirtley), which was most certainly the turning point of the game – or more correctly from a Kent perspective, the overturning point.

Smith, who had battled to 33 in 30 overs, got a ball that appeared to stop on him and he fell to a tame catch to cover; Jones' wild heave which resulted in a top edge and a catch two balls later had a wicked downside for Sussex.

Jason Lewry took the catch at mid-on in his right hand, but in so doing collided with Carl Hopkinson, who was on the field as a substitute for Tony Cottey, who had been hit on the right thumb in the same over, after Smith clipped a ball from Kirtley low to backward square leg. He had to have a precautionary X-ray.

Lewry though was far more worrying. He suffered a broken nose and he too needed X-rays on his left eye socket, which was feared to have been fractured after making contact with Hopkinson's knee.

Up to that point Kent had been making hard work of running down the 293 runs they needed for victory – a target that owed something to Kirtley and Lewry continuing to wag at the end.

Robert Key did not help either the Kent cause nor his England aspirations when he chopped on attempting to cut a ball from Lewry. His demise was witnessed by England selector Geoff Miller. Michael Carberry went in the next over, the first of Kirtley's victims.

Greg Blewett and Smith got things back on the rails with a 62-run stand either side of lunch before the Australian stepped down and pushed at Mushtaq to be well taken at silly mid-off.

When Matthew Walker's impulsive cut directed another Mushtaq delivery on to his stumps Kent were wobbling. Five overs later it was as good as over although a series of brief squalls scudded across the ground to keep alive faint Kent hopes of the match going into the fourth day.James Tredwell played across a straight ball from Kirtley, Martin Saggers top-edged a pull to be caught behind and in the same over Ben Trott was clean bowled.

As the black clouds rolled up the English Channel Sussex closed in for the kill and Mushtaq got Mark Ealham leg before on the back foot.

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