SUSSEX V SURREY at Hove (RCC)
8-11 SEPTEMBER 2026

Fourth hosts sixth. With three games to go, Sussex seem to be assured of Division One cricket in 2027 and Surrey took a big step in that direction by winning a low-scoring thriller against Yorkshire last week by a solitary wicket. But the Oval outfit aren't out of the woods yet. Essex and Yorkshire (seventh and eighth) play each other in this round, plus the one and only red-ball meeting between Leicestershire and Hampshire (the bottom two in the table) is coming into view.

Hats off to Sussex. But for their 12-point deduction (for breaching ECB financial guidelines), they would be in the title race. Only Somerset, the current leaders, have as many Div One red-ball victories (five) as the Martlets this term.

Seamer Henry Crocombe (40 Champo wickets at 23.52) has unquestionably been game-changer. However, the 24-year-old will sit out this game, after becoming only the 7th man in history to take a hat-trick in two successive first-class matches; and the first to do it in the County Championship since Dean Headley (for Kent) in 1996. But, as Crocombe will soon be a Surrey player, perhaps the two clubs have agreed it would be inappropriate for him to play this week.

With Ollie Robinson on England duty, the hosts will therefore look to spinners James Coles (24 wickets at 28.29) and Jack Carson (23 at 37.52) to lead the attack, with Ari Karvelas and Jaydev Unadkat sharing the new ball.

However, the batting will be a worry in the absence of Daniel Hughes (side strain) and Tom Clark (knee), and opener Tom Haines struggling to repeat the form he showed in 2024 and 2025. But Coles is averaging 35.16 with the willow, while Tom Price (46.28), John Simpson (28.56), Jack Leaning (26.93) and Carson (25.64) are more than capable of providing some backbone lower down in the order.

Surrey v Sussex - First-Class Records Sheet

Tom Lawes goes into this clash with 923 first-class career runs to his name. Turning to Sussex... Jack Carson has 199 f-c wickets, Joey Evison 94, Ari Karvelas 94 and Jaydev Unadkat 495. Also, Dan Ibrahim currently has 940 first-class runs, while John Simpson has racked up 11,808.

Surrey welcome Jordan Clark (Achilles) and Ryan Patel (hand) back to the fold, while, despite not being named in the South Londoners' 14-player squad, Ollie Pope is expected to be released to play by England.

It's amazing to think this will only be Surrey's second championship visit to Hove since 2010, which makes it a little less surprising that the South Londoners haven't won a four-day clash there since the final game of 2004 (thanks to hundreds from Rikki Clarke, in the first dig, Ali Brown, in the second, and slow left-armer Nayan Doshi's 10 wickets in the match (3-73 & 7-110)). Sussex are down to the bare bones with, in addition to their England calls, Daniel Hughes and Tom Clark sidelined and Surrey-bound seamer Henry Crocombe being rested. However, the south coast weather forecast for the next four days suggests we'll be fortunate to see much play on day one; and if the pitch is similar to the one the Martlets' groundstaff served up for the corresponding fixture last summer I can only envisage one outcome - draw.

T.Haines (capt), C.Tear, J.Coles, O.Carter, T.Price, J.Simpson (wk), J.Leaning, J.Carson, J.Unadkat, A.Karvelas and D.Goodman.

Nigel Llong and Jack Shantry.

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