Bevan holds the key

The Australian left-hander resumes on 57 this morning with Sussex 118-3 and still needing 150 for a victory which would push them back into the second division promotion places.

The balance of a tense, absorbing contest seemed to be tilting slightly Sussex's way when Bevan and Chris Adams batted positively in the evening session to add 51 in 18 overs after the county had lost both openers with 53 runs on the board.

The pair hit Keith Dutch out of the attack after the off-spinner had conceded 26 in four overs including a huge six from Adams which sailed over long off and out of the ground.

But with four overs of the day remaining Adams, who had been stranded on 20 for 31 deliveries, was beaten by a beauty from Phil Tufnell which turned and bounced before taking the edge.

Bevan, though, looked untroubled, reaching his half-century with two cracking boundaries off Angus Fraser. Another 18 runs this morning would take him past 1,000 runs this season.

That would be the perfect way for Bevan to sign off before he heads back home for three weeks for a one-day series against South Africa, especially if it helps his county claim an important victory.

Middlesex were favourites when Sussex set off in pursuit of 268 on a wearing pitch offering increasing assistance to Tufnell who had bowled beautifully in their first innings on Saturday when Sussex's batting lacked discipline.

They made an early breakthrough when Richard Montgomerie was drawn into a defensive shot by Simon Cook and feathered a catch to wicketkeeper David Nash.

Tufnell was brought into the attack in the ninth over and struck in his fifth. Toby Peirce was playing well and over confidence may have got the better of him when he came down the pitch trying to hit him through square but only succeeded in lofting a catch to mid-wicket which Mark Ramprakash took at full stretch at mid-wicket.

Sussex's victory target would have been considerably fewer had it not been for another masterly exhibition from Ramprakash and some solid support from Richard Johnson.

The man deemed surplus to requirements by England this week became the first batsman in Middlesex history to score hundreds in both innings four times when he made 112, his 50th first-class century and fifth against Sussex.

The only other Middlesex batsman to get past 50 in the match was Johnson and their century stand either side of lunch may ultimately prove crucial.

Johnson had to bat with his captain Justin Langer acting as runner because of a swollen knee which later prevented him from bowling.

It curbed his attacking instincts somewhat, but that was no bad thing as he helped Ramprakash put on 102 in 31 overs before he slashed at a wide delivery from Jason Lewry, the 13th with the new ball, after making 52 off 100 balls with nine fours and a straight six off Bevan.

Lewry and Kirtley quickly cleaned up the rest and Kirtley's 4-65 took his tally of Championship wickets to 24 in his last three matches. Since the reverse fixture with Middlesex in early June Kirtley's average had tumbled from 39.17 to 25.6.

In an exemplary 11-over spell yesterday morning he took 2-12 including seven maidens, five of them reeled off on the bounce as he consistently bowled a probing length which rendered Ramprakash virtually strokeless during the morning session.

Middlesex, resuming on 125-3, lost Owais Shah in the eighth over when he top-edged an attempted pull off Kirtley who ran across to short mid-wicket to complete the catch.

Nick Wilton, who kept tidily throughout, claimed the fifth of six catches in the match when David Nash nibbled at one down the leg side and Umer Rashid struck in his eighth over of the day when Dutch got a thick-edge to the keeper trying to cut.

Middlesex could only score four singles in ten overs as Rashid, who reeled off 24 overs either side of lunch, and Kirtley tightened the screw.

Middlesex's lead was only 150 when they lost their seventh wicket three overs before the break when Cook tamely prodded a ball which turned sharply from Rashid straight into the hands of short leg.

Sussex might even have harboured hopes of an an extra day off at that stage, but Johnson got his head down and although Rashid kept an end tied down with a controlled spell of left-arm spin, the county ran out of options at the other.

Justin Bates conceded 15 in two overs before lunch and wasn't used again.

That made it just seven overs in the match which hardly seemed to justify the off-spinner's inclusion in the first place.

With Robin Martin-Jenkins unable to bowl because of a recurrence of his shin injury, the Middlesex pair batted with increasing confidence although Johnson had a reprieve on 27 when he mis-timed an off drive and was relieved to see it loop gently over back-pedalling substitute fielder Paul Havell.

Ramprakash reached his hundred off 234 balls with eight fours, the majority of them punched effortlessly through the offside with sublime timing.

And it took something special to remove him, Tony Cottey holding a blinding catch low down at cover off a full blooded drive to give Kirtley his fourth wicket. Montgomerie claimed his sixth slip catch of the match in the next over when Tufnell flashed outside off stump at Lewry's awayswinger.