Rain looked like ruining an exciting finish to Sussex's Championship match against Gloucestershire at Hove.

Gloucestershire need 64 runs and Sussex four wickets for victory but there was no play before lunch.

The teams were reluctant to abandon the game with relatively little playing time needed to ensure a positive result but it would need a big improvement in conditions this afternoon for there to be a re-start.

Umpires Russell Warren and Martin Saggers continued to monitor conditions in the hope that the forecast improvement arrives in time.