Sussex got the boost of a wicket in the first over as their Championship challenge gathered further momentum at Arundel.

James Kirtley removed opener Paul Grayson for a fifth ball duck after Essex had won the toss in sweltering temperatures.

Jason Lewry then picked up the wicket of James Foster before England captain Nasser Hussain and Andy Flower began the task of rebuilding the Essex innings.

Grayson got a duck on his last visit to the Castle Ground three years ago and could hardly believe his luck when Kirtley found the edge with a ball which moved away late.

Hussain, in his last match before joining hostilities with the South Africans in the forthcoming Test series, looked in good touch, getting off the mark with a sweetly-timed cover drive off Lewry in the second over.

But it was hard work for the batsmen early on and Sussex had a second wicket in the eighth over when Lewry defeated James Foster's push forward with extra bounce and Richard Montgomerie moved to his left to take a juggling catch at the second attempt.

Mushtaq Ahmed was brought into the attack in the 13th over and it was soon clear that Hussain, who is regarded as one of the best players of spin in the country, relished his battle with the Pakistani maestro.

Successive boundaries in the 19th over on either side of the wicket were all about timing and Hussain came down the pitch in the 25th over to hoist the leg spinner over long on for six.

Sussex went into the game 26 points behind leaders Surrey and four clear of third-placed Lancashire, but Murray Goodwin believes it is too early to be talking in terms of a challenge to Surrey's domination of the Championship over the past five years.

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