Alsop impresses but Sussex win at Ageas Bowl

A below par batting performance set Hampshire on their way to defeat with only Tom Alsop (64) getting to grips with the Sussex bowling attack.

The home side were unable to break the Sussex stranglehold as wickets fell with alarming regularity.

Though Hampshire grabbed an early wicket Sussex were rarely in any trouble as they easily chased the target down.

The home side made two changes to their winning line-up with Michael Carberry rested and Gareth Berg suffering from food poisoning.

They were replaced by Tom Alsop, fresh from a century with the seconds and Fidel Edwards.

After opting to bat first Hampshire endured a disastrous power play which ended with the hosts on 45 for four.

For the first time this season James Vince and Rilee Rossouw failed to give Hampshire a firm foundation at the top of the order.

Vince was well caught by Jofre Archer off the fifth ball of the innings and his fellow opener joined him back in the pavilion at the start of the third over.

Alsop announced his arrival with two sixes plundered off Chris Jordan off the first three balls he faced.

By the end of the power play, however, the home side had also lost George Baily and Sean Ervine.

Alsop and Lewis McManus set about stemming the flow of wickets.

But the revival ended when the latter was bowled by Danny Briggs first ball of the 12th over.

It was Alsop who continued to provide the backbone of the Hampshire innings.

But he too fell two overs from the end to an attempted ramp shot sent straight to gully.

Without his superb 64 off 50 balls his side might well have equalled Hampshire’s lowest ever T20 score of just 85 runs.

In the end they limped to 126 for nine.

The early breakthrough Hampshire needed arrived when Reece Topley had Luke Wright out lbw in the first over of the Sussex reply.

Any hopes of a fightback were soon dimmed, however, as Chris Nash and Ben Brown steered the visitors to 55 for one at the end of the power-play.

In the end Sussex cruised to victory with over two overs to spare.

Brown top scored for them with 42.