Cricket: Sussex suffer etiquette problems

Sussex 149-9 v Warwickshire

IT IS part of the etiquette of cricket that a team is always 'invited' to bat first. Yesterday Sussex must have come close to being the first side to turn down an invitation, and confound the consequences: anything would have been better than batting under rain-cloud at Edgbaston against Warwickshire's seam attack of Allan Donald, Gladstone Small, Tim Munton, Dermot Reeve, and Roger Twose.

These bowlers exerted pressure that was intolerable for Sussex. Believing orthodox runs were almost impossible to score, the visitors reacted by trying quick singles and lost half of their first six wickets in the process.

Bad light and drizzle stopped play for three hours, or it might have been Sussex's bad play which stopped the light. Warwickshire did not have time to bat for the 20 overs which would have made a match of it, but it will take a funny rain-rule or a bowling-at-stumps shoot-out to stop them today

Glamorgan's hopes of booking a quarter-final NatWest trophy place were held up by Chris Cairns and steady rain in the second round tie at Trent Bridge. Cairns produced his best one-day batting performance, scoring 77 to steer Nottinghamshire to 194 all out. Glamorgan's progress was quickly halted by the bad weather.

Courtney Walsh put the skids under Somerset as Gloucestershire won their tie at Taunton by 22 runs. The home side lost their last nine wickets for 66 as Walsh took 4 for 43 from 11.4 overs.

Leicestershire fast bowler David Millns hit an unbeaten 29, his highest one-day score to help Leicestershire to 201 for 9 after they had struggled to 146 for 8 - and then claimed the wicket of Derbyshire's John Morris. Bad light eventually halted play leaving Leicestershire in control when the match resumes today.