Liddle halts Middlesex charge

Chris Liddle: Took three wickets in four balls

Dawid Malan: Top scored for Middlesex with 38

A sensational penultimate over from Chris Liddle helped Sussex clinch an 11-run victory over Middlesex in the Friends Life Twenty20 at Lord's on Sunday.

Liddle took three wickets in four balls to finish with career-best figures of five for 17 and end Middlesex's hopes of chasing down the visitors' total of 143 for eight.

Tim Roland-Jones (2-19) and Gareth Berg (3-17) had put Sussex in trouble after they had won the toss and elected to bat.

But they fought back from 26-3 to post a competitive total thanks to Murray Goodwin (43) and Scott Styris (48).

Sussex made a terrible start, losing Luke Wright, Matt Machan and Chris Nash inside the opening six overs.

Steven Crook had Wright caught at the wicket for just one while Machan lobbed a simple catch off the same bowler to mid-off for six as Crook finished with figures of 2-29.

Joe Gatting and Goodwin began the fightback by putting on 30 in 21 balls before Tom Smith beat a tentative defensive prod to bowl Gatting for 11.

Breakthrough

Goodwin has been in woeful form this season but came to Sussex's rescue by adding 56 with Scott Styris before being bowled by Roland-Jones.

Styris made the most of being dropped by Dawid Malan on 25 but fell just short of his half-century when he hit Roland-Jones straight to Berg at extra cover on 48.

Sussex's innings tailed off after that as they limped to 143-8, with Berg picking up the wickets of Ben Brown and Mike Yardy in the final over.

Liddle made the initial breakthrough by having Joe Denly caught at long off while Paul Stirling also went cheaply.

Malan top scored with 38 before he picked out Goodwin on the boundary off the bowling of Will Beer.

Berg and Neil Dexter put on 53 for the fourth wicket before Liddle returned to end their partnership by fooling Berg with a slower ball he lobbed straight to point for 23.

Middlesex still looked favourites until Liddle produced some fireworks in the penultimate over by removing Dexter (36), John Simpson and Chris Rogers.

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