Surrey’s Vitality Blast match against Sussex Sharks at Hove on Friday was abandoned after just 15.2 overs due to persistent rain.
The match began on time and continued uninterrupted until the clouds darkened and opened up over The 1st Central County Ground with the hosts on 116/5. Both sides will take a point from their opening fixture in the South Group.
It began in promising fashion for the home side with openers Luke Wright and Phil Salt racing out of the blocks. Wright took the lead early on but was the first to go, with 31 from 25 balls, when he chopped on to his stumps to give Gus Atkinson his maiden senior T20 wicket.
Salt was the aggressor from that point as Sussex reached the end of the powerplay on 69/1. His new partner Harry Finch went in the ninth over, skying Moriarty to Rory Burns on the cow corner boundary. That was also Moriarty’s first wicket in the Vitality Blast.
That began something of a collapse for Sussex and it was largely down to the spin contingent in Surrey’s ranks. 83/2 became 91/3 as Surrey’s stand-in captain Gareth Batty got off the mark in this year’s competition. Atkinson taking the catch that ended Salt’s stay at 40 from 22 balls.
Batty’s next over began with a moment of chaos as Delray Rawlins and Sussex new man Ravi Bopara got mixed up. James Taylor, fielding at short fine leg, made no mistake with the throw and Rawlins was out of his ground.
Bopara couldn’t make up for that, clothing Batty into the leg side for a simple catch and all of a sudden, Surrey had their hosts 95/5. Aaron Thomason and George Garton stabilised the innings before the weather took hold and the players dashed for cover.
Under cover was where they stayed until the abandonment was called by the umpires Billy Taylor and Ian Gould.
