County Championship: Archie Lenham puts Sussex in sight of win over Leicestershire

Archie Lenham trapped Lewis Hill leg before first ball

Archie Lenham took three quick wickets as Sussex finished the third day of their County Championship fixture against Leicestershire within touching distance of a first first-class win since April last year.

The teenage leg-spinner took 3-8 in three overs after the Foxes, needing 240 to make Sussex bat again, had made solid progress in reaching 94-1 in their second innings, with opener Hassan Azad passing 50 for the fourth time this season.

With tea approaching, Sussex skipper Tom Haines threw the ball to Lenham, and the 17-year-old struck with his third delivery, having Azad leg before on the back foot.

Two overs later he bowled Leicestershire captain Colin Ackermann with a ball that dipped and left the batter to clip the top of off-stump, and his next delivery secured another leg before decision against Lewis Hill as the new batter pushed forward.

Had Delray Rawlins been able to hold a skied pull from Rishi Patel at square leg off Henry Crocombe shortly after tea, a three-day win might have been in prospect.

Instead, Patel faced 201 deliveries in battling through to the close on 67 not out, with Leicestershire 195-5 and still trailing by 45 runs but hopeful of setting the visitors some sort of second-innings target on a pitch beginning to take spin.

The morning session saw the Sussex lower order add 64 to their side's overnight score of 386-6, although Leicestershire had only themselves to blame for Ollie Robinson reaching 26 before being run out by Ackermann, dropping him off consecutive deliveries when he was on just seven.

First, Patel, at second slip, grassed a straightforward edge off Ben Mike and then Hill, running in from third man, failed to hang on to a top edge.

Lenham was not as fortunate when he top-edged Chris Wright to wicket-keeper Harry Swindells as the 17-year-old fell two short of what would have been a maiden half-century, but Aaron Beard and Crocombe added 27 for the ninth wicket before Crocombe holed out to long-on and Beard lost his middle stump to a Wiaan Mulder yorker.

Leicestershire, who suffered three run-outs in their previous match against Glamorgan and another in their first innings here, very nearly made it five when Sam Evans, having pushed a delivery in Robinson's opening over back past the bowler, inexplicably attempted a quick single but Beard's throw from mid-off missed the stumps.

Sam Evans went quickly after lunch for just six, leg before on the back foot to Crocombe, but Azad and Patel played solidly until Lenham took a hand.

Report supplied by the ECB Reporters' Network.