A confident Kent side travels to a struggling Sussex outfit as the Spitfires meet the Sharks at the 1st Central County Ground, Hove on Sunday, June 7 at 2:30 PM local (7:00 PM IST). Sussex sit 1W-4L in five Blast matches — four straight defeats since the opener, most recently a 29-run loss at Hampshire (bowled out for 182 chasing 214) and an Ashton Turner-led Leicestershire chase at Hove. Tom Clark 122 runs SR 259 and Harrison Ward 109 runs SR 201 are the only sustained bright spots, with Tymal Mills 7 wickets in 5 carrying the bowling almost single-handed.
Kent arrive 3W-1L, 2nd in the South Group, and have already beaten Sussex at Canterbury three weeks ago — Crawley 75* (41), Sussex 197/6 after being 98/0 in the 8th. Billings 112 runs in 2 at SR 200+, Forrester impressed on Kent debut before scoring runs and taking wickets, and Tom Rogers + Lintott + Milnes + Klaassen form one of the deeper attacks in the competition. Kent’s only blip was a 9-wicket Battle-of-the-Bridge loss to Essex when they posted only 129/9. Sussex desperate for a Hove turnaround; Kent eyeing the Quarter-Final picture.
Match Details
| Details | Information |
| Match | Sussex Sharks vs Kent Spitfires, T20 Blast 2026 47th Match |
| Date | Sunday, 7 June 2026 |
| Time | 2:30 PM local / 1:30 PM GMT / 7:00 PM IST (Sunday afternoon, day match) |
| Venue | 1st Central County Ground, Hove. Traditionally a strong batting venue with short straight boundaries; average first-innings total has slid from 190 in 2023 down to roughly 176 in the current Blast. Batting first wins about 54% of matches here. Pace and spin average within a run of each other, but spinners are markedly more economical. Powerplay wickets fall regularly (~2 per innings) and middle-overs spin can be a wicket-taking phase as well. |
| Series | Vitality T20 Blast 2026 (24th edition). New three-group format. South Group contest. SECOND meeting between the sides this season — Kent won the first by 7 wickets at Canterbury on 25 May (Crawley 75 not out, Billings led the chase). |
| Broadcast | Sky Sports Cricket (UK), FanCode (India). Live stream: Sky Go / NOW (UK), FanCode app, ECB website and the England Cricket app. |
Dream11 Team For SUS vs KET Match 47
Top Picks For SUS vs KET Match 47
| Player | Team | Role | Key Points |
| Zak Crawley | KET | Batter | Captain pick. 75* (41) vs Sussex at Canterbury 3 weeks ago. 120 runs in 4 innings at avg 40. England Test opener regaining T20 rhythm. Must-pick. |
| Dian Forrester | KET | All-Rounder | Vice-Captain pick. SA T20I, ex-CSK; bats left-hand, bowls right-arm fast. Career T20 avg 35.84, SR 140.7. Two-way points; named alongside Lintott as Kent’s standout bowler so far. |
| Sam Billings | KET | Wicket-keeper | Kent captain. 112 runs in 2 innings at SR 200+. Anchored the Middlesex chase from No.4 with a 25-ball half-century. Stumpings + WK catches add safety floor. |
| Tom Clark | SUS | All-Rounder | Sussex’s most explosive opener. 122 runs in 3 innings at SR 259. Right-hand bat with handy off-spin. Carrying a minor knock from the Middlesex match but expected to be available. |
| Daniel Hughes | SUS | Batter | Australian opener. Top-three Sussex run-scorer (Hughes / Clark / Coles). Picked the gaps consistently in the powerplay before falling to good balls; due for a bigger score. |
| Matt Milnes | KET | Bowler | Back at Kent on a 3-year deal. Right-arm seam, 193 Kent wickets in his first stint. Returned 7-38 List A career-best (with a hat-trick) before re-signing. Wickets in the powerplay and at the death. |
Pitch Report
| Details | Information |
| Venue | 1st Central County Ground, Hove. |
| Pitch Type | Traditionally a good batting surface with short straight boundaries. Pace bowlers get a little movement with the new ball; spinners are markedly more economical through the middle. Average first-innings score has come down from 190 in 2023 to ~176 in the current Blast, so totals around the 175–185 mark are competitive without being out of reach. |
| Average 1st Innings Score | Around 176 across the 2026 Blast at this venue. 180+ is competitive, 200+ is dominant; below 160 is vulnerable on this ground. |
| Pace vs Spin | PACE early — Mills (SUS, 7 wkts), Hudson-Prentice (SUS), Klaassen (KET, left-arm), Rogers (KET, Australian), Milnes (KET). SPIN through the middle — Briggs (SUS, left-arm), Coles (SUS, left-arm), Lintott (KET, left-arm), Parkinson (KET, leg-spin). Powerplay wickets average ~2 per innings; middle-overs spin is the biggest wicket-taking phase here. |
| Toss Factor | Slight edge to BATTING FIRST — teams winning the toss and setting a target have won about 54% of matches at this venue. With a 2:30 PM start under cloud cover, the new ball will do a bit, then conditions ease as the afternoon progresses. |
| Key Matchup | Tom Clark / Daniel Hughes vs Klaassen + Milnes in the powerplay. Clark’s strike rate has been the headline number of Sussex’s campaign; if Kent’s new-ball pair can take out one inside three overs, the Sharks slip back into their pattern of losing. |
Weather Report
| Details | Information |
| Temperature | 14–16°C (57–60°F). Mild Sunday afternoon on the south coast. |
| Sky | Mostly cloudy with sunny breaks. Cloud cover early should help the new-ball seamers. |
| Rain Chance | Around 20%. A full 40-over game is likely, though a brief shower can’t be ruled out. |
| Humidity | Moderate, around 70%. No major dew factor in a day match. |
| Overall | Decent batting conditions overall, with a small new-ball window for the seamers. No serious rain threat; expect a full game and a fair contest between bat and ball. |
SUS vs KET Match 47 Toss Prediction
The toss winner is likely to bat first. Hove has favoured batting-first sides this season (~54% win rate), and there’s no evening dew to swing the balance towards chasing. Posting on the board and trusting the spinners to squeeze in the middle overs is the percentage call.
If Tymal Mills (Sussex) wins, he likely bats first. The plan: Tom Clark and Daniel Hughes attack the powerplay against Klaassen + Milnes, with Ward and Leaning to settle through the middle against Lintott. Push hard for 180+. Then Mills opens the bowling at Muyeye and Bell-Drummond, with Briggs and Coles tying down Crawley + Billings in overs 7–14. Sussex have leaked runs in the death overs, which remains the area Kent will target.
If Sam Billings (Kent) wins, he too is likely to bat first. Muyeye and Bell-Drummond have raced through the powerplay for Kent this Blast; Crawley to anchor, Billings to finish, Forrester to power on. 190+ is the target. Then Klaassen + Milnes new ball at Sussex’s openers, with Lintott in the middle to attack Leaning and Coles, and Forrester / Rogers at the death. Kent’s bowling depth — five genuine options plus Forrester — is the biggest single advantage on the slate.
Injury Updates
Sussex Sharks:
Tom Clark picked up a minor knock during the Middlesex defeat but featured in the squad for the Hampshire trip and is expected to start at Hove. Henry Crocombe is back from England Lions duty after taking 4/65, adding pace to the attack. Jofra Archer and Ollie Robinson are not in the Blast XI — Archer is being managed for England red-ball plans, Robinson is in red-ball form. The 14-man squad named for the Hampshire match featured Alsop, Briggs, Carson, Carter, Coles, Crocombe, Hudson-Prentice, Hughes, Lamb, Leaning, Mills (c), Price, Simpson (wk) and Ward. Expect a similar group for Kent.
Kent Spitfires:
Grant Stewart and Matt Quinn remain unavailable with training injuries. Senuran Muthusamy is not available for the Blast (CSA didn’t release him after a knee issue) — he’ll join later in the Championship. Dian Forrester signed as the replacement overseas player and has impressed alongside Australian seamer Tom Rogers. South African seamer Keith Dudgeon is in the squad but hasn’t been picked yet. Joe Denly remains on a T20-focused one-year deal. Otherwise the XI from the win over Middlesex (and the loss to Essex) is the most likely shape, with Lintott + Parkinson sharing the spin duties.
