Sussex suffered a 14 run defeat to Essex in the Vitality Blast at the 1st Central County Ground.

The Sharks made one change from their eight-wicket victory over Kent with Aaron Thomason coming in for Chris Jordan.

Sussex won the toss and bowled first.

Ollie Robinson struck two balls into his first over, as he dismissed Cameron Delport for 1 after he nicked the ball to Brown behind the stumps, to leave Essex 2-1.

Dan Lawrence then started to take aim in the next three overs hitting 38 runs himself which included five sixes and two fours and Westley hit 17 as Essex moved onto 58-1 after five.

Ravi Bopara came into the attack to bowl the seventh over and had an appeal for lbw against Lawerence, who was on 47 at that point but it was not given.

Lawrence brought up his 50 off 24 balls with a single.

The visitors brought up their 100 with nine overs having been bowled.

With six runs coming from the next over, Essex were 106 for 1 at the halfway stage of their innings.

Birthday boy Delray Rawlins made the breakthrough for the Sharks getting rid of Westley for 39, after he picked out Callum MacLeod at long-off to leave Essex 120 for 2.

Sussex then got a big wicket of Lawrence for 81 off 44 balls, as he was caught by Rawlins off the bowling of Mills to leave Essex 130 for 3, with just over seven overs remaining.

Rawlins picked up his second wicket in the next over trapping Ryan Ten Doeschate lbw for 1, to leave Essex 136 for 4.

Danny Briggs picked up his first wicket of the innings bowling Paul Walter for nine, with Essex 150 for 5 with four overs left.

Garton came back into the attack to bowl his final and Sussex’s penultimate over and he went for eight runs, to finish with figures of 0-35.

Weise bowled the final over for Sussex, which went for 14 runs to leave Essex 197 for 5 at the end of their innings.

Sussex began their chase well hitting 24 off the opening three overs.

However, in the next over they suffered a big blow as skipper Luke Wright departed for 20 off 13 balls, after he was caught by Essex skipper Simon Harper off the bowling of Matthew Quinn to leave Sussex 29 for 1.

MacLeod then departed for nine off 12 balls, as he was trapped lbw by Harmer, with the hosts 60 for 2.

The Sharks brought up their 100 with two balls left of the 11th over, as Rawlins edged the ball for four down to third man.

Essex picked up the big wicket of Rawlins for 37 off 19 balls, after he scooped the ball to Westley at short third man off the bowling of Lawrence.

In the same over Thomason then fell just short of his half century, for 47 off 36 balls after being caught by Quinn off the bowling of Lawrence, to leave Sussex 122 for 4 with just over six overs to go.

Sussex brought the 150 up with 3.5 overs left after David Weise cut the ball to the off side for four.

Ravi Bopara departed with 20 balls left of the innings after his aerial shot was caught at long off by Jack Plom off the bowling of Walter.

Weise, who was the Sharks last hope went for 30 off 17 balls, after being caught by Harmer at long off with Sam Cook doing the bowling.

Garton followed shortly after for two off six balls, as he was caught by Westley off the bowling of Cook.

Robinson followed with the second to last ball of the 19th over as he was run out by Harmer, with Sussex requiring 24 off the last over to win.

Briggs was then dropped on the boundary after pulling a shot to the off side.

Brown finished on 15 not out off seven balls and Briggs finished 2 not out off 2 balls as Sussex finished on 185-8.