Abell and Rew impress for Somerset against Sussex
Tom Abell continues his fine form as Somerset reach 335-5 on the opening day of the County Championship Division One match with Sussex at Taunton.
Only Notts' Joe Clarke has scored more runs than Tom Abell's 651 this season [Getty Images] Rothesay County Championship, Division One, Cooper Associates County Ground, Taunton (day one) Somerset 335-5: J Rew 86, Abell 74*, Lammonby 73; Haines 2-39 Sussex: Yet to bat Somerset (2pts) Sussex (1pt) Match scorecard Tom Abell continued his fine form as Somerset ran up 335-5 on the opening day of the County Championship Division One match with Sussex at the Cooper Associates Ground, Taunton. The 32-year-old, who went into the game averaging over 70 in nine innings this season, was 74 not out at stumps, off 136 balls, with eight fours and a six. James Rew celebrated his England Test squad call-up with 86, while Tom Lammonby contributed 73.
Abell has now hit more than 25 in his last 14 Championship innings' stretching back to last summer. There were two wickets for Tom Haines, while Sussex skipper Ollie Robinson bowled well in short spells to take 1-28 from 13 overs. Somerset's new overseas recruit Jordan Hermann, signed for three Championship games, was selected to open the batting with Josh Thomas, allowing Rew to drop back down to number four.
The 25-year-old South African left-hander acquitted himself well against the new ball and scored his first runs for the county with two to fine leg off Robinson's opening over of the match. But Somerset's attempts to solve top order batting problems suffered another setback when Thomas, on seven, fell leg before to a ball from Robinson angled into him from around the wicket. Hermann followed with the total on 46, having contributed a solid 25, another lbw victim, this time for Haines, trying to pull a short of a length delivery.
That was as good as it got for Sussex in a morning session played out under sunny skies on an easy-paced pitch, which saw several edges fall short of the slip cordon. Rew, who had been in prime form before two unsuccessful games as an opener, began scratchily, but gradually rediscovered his touch as he and Lammonby took the score to 107-2 at lunch. A swept six by Rew off Jack Carson in the final over before the interval had brought the hundred up, but two balls later the Somerset wicketkeeper was given a life when dropped by James Coles at mid-wicket.