July 2: Sussex Vs Surrey

It might have been a great night at Hove financially but the return of cricket's brightest competition did nothing for the Sharks' faltering season.

Instead, a shivering crowd of about 4,200 saw the hosts outgunned and at times embarrassed by a Surrey side whose 221-8 equalled the competition record.

Adam Hollioake, top wicket-taker in the country when Surrey won this cup last year, then produced a match-winning haul of 4-14, with superb support from spinner Nayan Doshi and his fielders, as the last seven men went for 21 runs in 5.1 overs.

Defeat by 100 runs leaves Sussex desperate for a win over Hampshire next Friday night in their only other home game if they are to have a chance of joining seven other teams in the knockout stages.

What made it all the more disappointing for the county was that they failed to offer hundreds of potential new fans the exciting finish they craved.

Which is another reason why they will have extra incentive to shine next week in a competition which shows no sign of losing popularity.

A year ago, Sussex made their bow in the Twenty20 at the Rose Bowl with no one quite knowing what to expect. This time around the trepidation had given way to expectation. Last night's bumper crowd presumably included some of those who were ringing the County Ground at the height of the Championship title race last summer asking: "When's the next Twenty20 match?"The throng waiting to get in at 5.30pm would outnumber some gatherings you would find for a mundane session of a four-dayer, especially in such cold and blustery conditions.

Attitudes on the pitch have changed too. Last summer, at least one county was talking about resting their experienced players and bringing in sloggers from local clubs. A year on, Kent's capture of Shahid Afridi was being described as the first instance of a county signing a Twenty20 specialist. And all because someone had the bright idea of playing a complete game of cricket when people without lots of time on their hands could actually go and watch from start to finish.

They had plenty to appreciate last night, especially from Surrey, from the moment Scott Newman's fierce pull through mid-wicket helped the visitors plunder 13 off Mohammad Akram's opening over.

James Kirtley sent down three wides in his first five deliveries, including one which went all the way to the Sea End rope, and the visitors were 29-0 after just two overs. Newman pulled Kirtley for six just behind square to start the fourth over and added two successive fours, taking him to 34, while the usually explosive Ali Brown was still on two at the other end.

There was brief respite for Sussex when Newman miscued a pull to mid-on from the final ball of a decent opening over from Robin Martin-Jenkins.

When Tim Murtagh got a thin edge behind off Luke Wright in the next over, Brown decided it was time to up the tempo, taking 26 off his next 13 balls.

The visitors were 103-2 off eight overs when Sussex turned to spin. Eight overs later, that total had improved by a more modest 60 as Mushtaq Ahmed and Mark Davis did a decent job. Davis ended Brown's 25-ball onslaught, which included four fours and three sixes, by trapping him lbw and bowled debutant Greg Blewett in his next over.

In fact, Davis did not concede a single boundary in his four overs. By contrast, Ramprakash sent the first five balls of Akram's comeback over for four before being brilliantly picked up on the mid-wicket boundary by Wright as he looked to make it six out of six.

It was enough to take Surrey past any totals they posted when winning this competition last season and they would have overhauled the previous Twenty20 record of 221 had Jonathan Batty done better than play the last ball straight back to Kirtley.

The challenge to Ian Ward against his former county could not have been greater and he responded by thumping the first three balls of the reply to the boundary before being beaten going for a tight second run to Newman at deep square leg.

That left Matt Prior to ride his wave of good current form and a bit of luck, being dropped by Ramprakash when he skyed to wide mid-on, then lofting a James Benning no-ball for six over mid-wicket.

Just to prove even the stars can lose track in this more upbeat version of the game, Hollioake caught Prior off the subsequent free hit and looked mystified as the home batsman went through unworried for two runs.

Mike Yardy probably expected at least the same reward when he launched into Phil Sampson. Instead, Blewett clung on to an astonishing catch at short mid-wicket and, with Prior driving shoulder-high to Brown at wide mid-on in the next over, Sussex reached halfway at 87-3.

Chris Adams welcomed Blewett to the attack with eight off three balls but that was the last real act of defiance by Sussex. Doshi proved as tough to get away as Davis and Hollioake's introduction spelled the end of the contest. His first delivery trapped Adams in front as the skipper looked to paddle the ball away to leg, his sixth saw Mushtaq held at short third man. When Martin-Jenkins holed out to long-off in the next over, it brought Doshi the wicket he deserved.

Blewett clung on to the highest of the night to send back Wright and Murray Goodwin, who never got going, was bowled first ball, though Akram at least denied Hollioake the satisfaction of a hat-trick.

It was fizzling out horribly for the hosts by then. Now Sussex must accept their second chance to delight the masses when Hampshire visit.