Simpson sets up Sussex with hundred against Yorks

John Simpson reached his century off the day's penultimate ball [Getty Images]

Rothesay County Championship, Division One, Headingley (day one)

Sussex 364-6: Simpson 101*, Price 93, Haines 64, Coles 47; White 3-42, Hill 2-58

Yorkshire: Yet to bat

Yorkshire 2ps, Sussex 3pts

Match scorecard

John Simpson scored an unbeaten century and Tom Price a half-century as buoyant Sussex enjoyed an impressive start to their County Championship match against Yorkshire at Headingley.

Sussex are chasing a third win in as many Division One matches this summer, with ex-Gloucestershire man Price starring against Leicestershire and Warwickshire with second-innings scores of 73 and 70 not out.

Here, he bettered those efforts with a composed 93 off 159 balls as Sussex closed on 373-6 from 96 overs. He shared a sixth-wicket 165 with Simpson either side of tea, with the wicketkeeper-batter adding 101 not out off 163 to an early 64 from opener Tom Haines.

Yorkshire are aiming to get their season up and running following a draw at Glamorgan and a defeat at home by Hampshire. Jack White was their standout bowler with 3-42 from 18 overs, while England star Joe Root took a catch at first slip and bowled five overs of off-spin for 18.

While Sussex went in unchanged for the third game running, Yorkshire made three changes from that Hampshire game.

Root and captain Jonny Bairstow were two of those inclusions, the latter in place of fellow wicketkeeper-batter Harry Duke. Bairstow, though, has not taken the gloves having fractured his thumb during the opening week of the season. Opening batter Fin Bean has taken that role.

Expensive Australian Test quick Jhye Richardson - 0-105 from 16 overs - fed Haines a series of drive balls as he raced out of the blocks. Six off his first 20 balls whistled through the off-side for four.

Sussex had reached 41-0 after 11 overs, only to lose Dan Hughes caught behind off an inside edge and Tom Clark lbw as they pushed forward against White in the 12th.