Neither Chris Adams nor Stephen Fleming have been seen anywhere near the bookies' van at Arundel this week.

But the rival captains will need a gambler's instincts if this Championship match is not going to suffer a long, lingering death today.

The loss of 142 overs in the first two days has left little room for manouevre and Nottinghamshire made steady if unspectacular progress yesterday after Sussex had been bowled out for 355.

Fortified by innings of contrasting styles from opener Darren Bicknell and Fleming himself, who reached a fine century in the last over of the day, Nottinghamshire reached 249-4, 106 behind.

Were they to declare overnight and feed Sussex some runs this morning there could still be a good finish and Fleming has already shown this season a willingness to negotiate in search of a positive result.

In their last match against Hampshire, Fleming and his opposite number Shane Warne revived a rain-ruined contest on the final day which Nottinghamshire looked to be winning until they lost six wickets for 11 and were beaten in the last over.

It could be a case of once bitten, twice shy for the New Zealand captain.

Both sides could do with a win before a three-week break for the Twenty20 Cup.

Surrey's victory over Hampshire yesterday has left Sussex and Middlesex in danger of being cast adrift in the bottom half of the table with the back-markers, Gloucestershire and Glamorgan, while a fourth victory would instantly revive Nottinghamshire's hopes of winning their first title since 1987.

But after seeing his bowlers toil in strength-sapping heat yesterday, Adams will have to weigh up his options carefully.

Sussex showed commendable discipline on a slow pitch offering only grudging assistance to either their seamers or Mushtaq Ahmed, who limped out of the attack after tea with a sore shin and may be unable to bowl today.

If Sussex had held their catches things might have been different.

The dogged Bicknell was dropped at slip by Richard Montgomerie immediately after passing 50 for the fifth time this season while Russell Warren, with whom he had added 71 in 31 overs for the second wicket, was missed at point on 21 by Murray Goodwin.

It did not prove to be an expensive miss. Warren had added just four more when he was defeated by late inswing to give Luke Wright a deserved wicket.

The 20-year-old, in only his second Championship appearance, lost nothing in comparison to Sussex's more experienced quicker bowlers of whom Martin-Jenkins, in particular, deserved more than the solitary success he enjoyed near the end when he knocked back David Hussey's off stump.

James Kirtley beat Jason Gallian for pace to make the initial breakthrough in the seventh over but Bicknell was resolute and Fleming played with his customary elegance, picking off unhurried boundaries for four of his first five scoring shots.

In glorious evening sunshine, they put together an entertaining third-wicket stand of 128 in 32 overs before Kirtley surprised Bicknell with extra bounce and had him caught at short leg.

He had faced 233 balls and hit 12 fours in his 88.

That represented a good comeback by Kirtley, who had been driven back over his head for six by Fleming earlier in his spell.

But the languid left-hander duly reached his second hundred of the season against Sussex, made off 125 balls with 13 fours.

Earlier, Sussex's last five wickets had fallen for 55 in 18 overs but not before Adams had reached his fourth Championship half-century of the season.

Wright, too, batted with increasing confidence and last wicket pair Kirtley and Jason Lewry added 20 runs to earn their side a fourth batting bonus point before Lewry became AJ Harris's fifth victim of the innings.

June 18, 2005