Mushtaq Ahmed had star billing as Sussex began their Championship defence at the Oval but he was upstaged by a former Pakistan team-mate on an entertaining first day of the new season.

Azhar Mahmood led a thrilling fightback by belting 84 off 97 balls as Surrey recovered from 121-6 to make 304 before Ian Ward and Richard Montgomerie launched the Sussex reply in confident style, reaching 75-0 from 20 overs.

Seventy of Mahmood's runs came in boundaries (13 fours, 3 sixes) and his powerful strokeplay eventually drove a previously disciplined Sussex attack to distraction.

Good work by his seamers meant skipper Chris Adams did not need to summon Mushtaq until a minute before 3pm after 48 overs had been bowled, but the leg spinner soon found himself suffering.

A typically easy-paced Oval track gave Mahmood licence to go for his shots, leaving construction workers rebuilding the Vauxhall End grateful their hard hats offered protection from cricket balls.

Mahmood spoilt Robin Martin-Jenkins' figures by hitting him for successive sixes over long on. His third six, off Mushtaq, had to be retrieved by a site worker from the bottom of a drainage ditch.

A first century since 1998 seemed his for the taking until Jason Lewry slanted one across his defences.

Mahmood added 108 in 121 deliveries with Martin Bicknell for the seventh wicket to transform the Surrey innings with Bicknell contributing eight boundaries before gloving Kevin Innes behind.

More resistance followed with Ian Salisbury depositing Mushtaq into the foundations as he helped Jimmy Ormond add 59 for the ninth wicket before Mushtaq's googly brought him a 999th first-class wicket.

Surrey captain Jonathan Batty would have expected a lot more than 300 after winning the toss. Batting conditions were more like high summer than the first day but Batty and the Surrey top order spent most of the first session trying to outdo each other in finding daft ways of getting out.

Apart from Adam Hollioake, all of their top six got starts but only Alistair Brown got to 27. Most culpable was Mark Ramprakash who stood on one leg to toe-end a ball nearly two foot outside stump to cover.

The Sussex seamers maintained disciplined lines and waited for the next extravagant shot. Martin-Jenkins' figures of 4-59 from 20.4 overs did not flatter him.

In nine overs before lunch he took 3-16 including Adam Hollioake with the last ball of the session, a perfect outswinger which gave the exemplary Tim Ambrose the second of four catches behind the stumps.

Ward and Montgomerie put conditions into perspective in 20 overs before the close, Ward top-edging a six off Bicknell in an unbeaten 44.