Goodwin guides Sussex into final

TWENTY20 CUP SEMI-FINAL, Edgbaston:
Sussex 137-3 beat Northants 136-6 by seven wickets

Match scorecard

Goodwin paced his innings to perfection at Edgbaston

Murray Goodwin hit an unbeaten 80 off 67 balls as Sussex cruised into the Twenty20 Cup final with a seven-wicket victory over Northants at Edgbaston.

The former Zimbabwe Test player shared a stand of 91 with Rory Hamilton-Brown, who made 29, and saw his side home on 137-3 with two deliveries to spare.

Northants made a positive start to the game, thanks to Ian Harvey's rapid 21.

But they lost momentum mid-innings and despite Nicky Boje's unbeaten 34, their total of 136-6 was insufficient.

It was a generally disappointing effort by the Steelbacks in their first appearance on finals day and although the game went down to the final over, Sussex won through with a degree of comfort - and in the process earned themselves the added bonus of a trip to the big-money Twenty20 Champions League in India later this year, a prize available for both finalists.

"Of course, the tournament will be a big thing to look forward to and, after today, we can sit down and looking forward to it and plan for it, but first and foremost we have the final to look forward to.

"People mention six million dollars and you hear so many different things. Before the semi-final you didn't want to think about it too much because you are playing quality opposition," said captain Michael Yardy.

Sussex opted to field after winning the toss and following Harvey's 15-ball cameo, which ended when he chopped an off-cutter from James Kirtley into his stumps, they succeeded in strangling the scoring rate on a pitch which offered a modicum of turn for spinners Yardy and Will Beer.

After Niall O'Brien lofted Beer over long-on for six in the 10th over, Northants only mustered one boundary in the next seven overs.

And although Chris Nash failed to hold a difficult leaping chance offered by O'Brien at backward point, their fielding was generally sharp, as typified by Andrew Hodd's smart leg-side stumping in the next over which sent the Irishman on his way for 24.

606: DEBATE

Sussex played well but i think we did not help ourselves.

Montygazzak1

Northants managed to add 29 from the last three overs, thanks to a flurry of fours by skipper Boje, but their decision to keep fellow South African Andrew Hall down the order at number eight, resulting in him facing only two deliveries, was a mystery.

The Sussex reply was ignited in the third over when Luke Wright, after a lucky inside edge to the fine leg boundary, forced Johan van der Wath through the covers for another four and then pulled a short ball for six.

Wright perished for 18 in the next over, giving an easy catch to mid-off as Hall made the breakthrough, but Goodwin put away any loose balls which came his way to keep the scoreboard ticking over and the Sharks were in control after Hamilton-Brown hammered a ball from Lee Daggett for six in the eighth over.

England spin bowler Monty Panesar had to wait until the 11th over for his opportunity and although his bowling was tidy, he was unable to conjure up a badly-needed wicket.

Northants looked flat in the field and when David Willey dropped Hamilton-Brown off his bowling, the impression that it was not to be their day intensified.

Goodwin reached his half century off 43 balls in the same over with his seventh boundary and at the end of the 17th over, the south coast side were only 16 short of their target.

Hall and van der Wath gave Northants a glimmer of hope with the wickets of Hamilton-Brown and Dwayne Smith, but it was too little too late and it was fitting that Goodwin should be the man to strike the winning run.

"You always want a guy batting through the innings, if you do you always win more than you lose. Murray is a big-occasion player and always turns up when he is needed," said Yardy.

"We did well to restrict them to what they scored. The game probably went a closer than we expected to but in the end we won the game."