County Championship: Essex beat Sussex by an innings and 39 runs

Essex needed just 25 minutes to secure only their second victory of the season in the County Championship when they beat Sussex by an innings and 39 runs at Hove.

James Coles completed his third successive Championship hundred, but Sussex were bowled out for 261 in their second innings and suffered their first Championship defeat at Hove since May 2022.

Sussex’s cause at the start of the final day was pretty hopeless with 55 still needed to make Essex bat again and only three wickets in hand.

Coles, 99 not out overnight, was able to follow up centuries against Durham and Warwickshire by reaching his seventh first-class hundred, when he cut the fourth ball of the first over of the day from Matt Critchley to the boundary.

Coles was ninth out for 108, when he slog-swept Simon Harmer and top-edged to Jamie Porter at backward square leg. He had faced 214 balls, hitting 14 fours and a six.

Harmer had made the breakthrough in the second over when Ari Karvelas tickled a ball down the leg side and was well caught by Michael Pepper.

The end came when Critchley bowled Henry Crocombe for two.

The leg-spinner finished with 4-41 and played his part in an excellent performance by Essex, who will fancy their chances of climbing the table in the remaining four games now they have a full-strength bowling attack available again, having controlled this match from the first session.