At the start of the season, few pundits predicted Sussex would be virtually the only challengers to the Championship crown which perennially seems to end up in Surrey's mitts.
 | MUSHTAQ'S SEASON SO FAR Mushtaq has 65 wickets from Sussex's first nine games His total haul is more than new ball pair James Kirtley (40) and Jason Lewry (23) have managed between them Somerset's Nixon McLean (49) is the second most successful bowler in the Championship |
In 2002, 'Good old Sussex by the Sea,' as they are referred to in the club's unofficial anthem, finished just one spot above the relegation zone.
But the signing of Mushtaq Ahmed, the leg-spinner for some time out of favour with Pakistan, proved an inspired move.
Sussex stand just five points behind the star-studded holders and the match down at Hove between the two teams on 30 July could arguably decide the destination of the title.
Club captain Chris Adams is chuffed to bits about the efforts of his mostly inexperienced side.
"We've spent the last two to three years planning to try to build a side that could compete for the Championship," he explains in an interview for this website.
"To do that we realised we had to go back to square one and find some damn good youngsters from our system and around the country.
"It's great to be up there now, it's very exciting stuff."
The Mushtaq factor has clearly been enormous. "His rate of return is extraordinary," says Adams.
"You would have to say he's been the catalyst for our success and to have won six of our nine games so far is ahead of what he would have hoped."
Four of those wins have come in Sussex's last four matches.
In addition to Mushtaq's starring role, Jason Lewry had 10 wickets in the win against Essex at Arundel, while veteran batsman Paul Cottey has been scoring runs for fun.
The one area of weakness is the top order.
 Cottey is averaging over 60 this season, with three centuries |
The familiar opening partnership of Richard Montgomerie and Murray Goodwin has not produced the goods of their annus mirabilis in 2001.
And Adams himself is short of runs - a factor the captain is aware of.
"Perhaps there are one or two batsmen, myself included, who haven't fired yet.
"The most pleasurable thing is that players who haven't been consistent in the past are all of a sudden churning out lots of runs - Cottey has been a prime example."
And the youngsters Matt Prior and Tim Ambrose, who rotate duties as wicket-keeper and between them score plenty of runs, inspire further eulogies from Adams.
"The beauty about youth is that they are unhinged from all the cares of the world and the worries of doubt.
"They are just finding out more about themselves and are just getting better and better.
"Prior's 21, Ambrose is 20. They've got their whole career ahead of them so for them to be performing as they are is just magnificent."
With a staff of just 18 and Lewry out injured - possibly for the remainder of the season - Adams warns fans not to expect too much too soon.
"We are still two or three years away from really holding out a campaign against Surrey.
"But the pressure will always be on them. They are the Manchester United of county cricket, they are expected to win and they should win by a country mile.
"I'm ecstatic that my team is doing as much as we could have asked of them but I still don't think people should get too excited about Sussex."
MMIX
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