A season that threatened to go into freefall when Yorkshire were eliminated from the Twenty20 Cup for failing to properly register Rafiq is set to experience a happy ending, an outcome that will be greeted with as much relief in the boardroom as it will in the dressing room.

If the Rafiq affair represented the nadir of a turbulent campaign, then these past two days have served as its pinnacle.

Improbably, Yorkshire have surely rescued themselves by thus far outplaying last season's county champions on their own patch, and not even the most dyed-in-the-wool Yorkshireman would have predicted that after the visitors plunged to 80-6 on the opening day.

Aided by centuries from Adil Rashid and David Wainwright on Thursday, which enabled Yorkshire to declare on 400-9, the visitors continued their good work yesterday when they dismissed Sussex for 207 and then restricted them to 118-2 in the follow-on.

Provided Kent do not draw against Durham at Canterbury (and the home team were 159-5 at stumps, 116 behind) Yorkshire will survive provided they do not lose today; should Kent win and Yorkshire draw, Yorkshire would be relegated.

In a season where every point has seemingly proved vital, arguably the most significant from both Yorkshire's and Sussex's perspective was the final bowling point Kent failed to accrue yesterday afternoon.

That meant the fate of the participants at Hove rested in their own hands and that Kent were favourites to go down, and although the mathematics are more baffling than Newcastle United's decision yesterday to appoint Joe Kinnear as manager, the upshot is that Yorkshire are home and dry bar the shouting.

After taking three wickets in the dying throes of day two to leave Sussex 25-3 overnight, Yorkshire were made to work yesterday morning during an opening session in which they captured only one wicket, Murray Goodwin brilliantly stumped by Gerard Brophy off Steve Patterson after the batsman over-balanced trying to negotiate a delivery down the leg-side.

Goodwin walked off furious with himself, swinging his bat about like a mad axe-man, but opener Chris Nash steadied the ship as he went to an obdurate fifty in company with the stylish Matt Prior.

Sussex seemed to be mounting a recovery of sorts, but when Prior fell shortly into the afternoon session, nonchalantly caught one-handed by Richard Pyrah at point off Patterson, Sussex lost their way in the glorious sunshine.

Pyrah took a routine catch at point in the following over to send back Chris Adams off Tim Bresnan for a duck, which left Sussex 129-6 and in danger of failing to collect even a solitary batting point.

Nash went to his hundred from 163 balls, his second fifty arriving from just 58 deliveries, before falling with the total on 193 when he pulled Wainwright's first ball from the Cromwell Road end to short mid-wicket.

Robin Martin-Jenkins shouldered arms to Rashid and was adjudged lbw, Wainwright had Mohammad Sami caught by the diving Jacques Rudolph at slip, and the innings came to an end when James Lewry was caught by Adam Lyth in the gully off Wainwright, who finished with 3-9 from five overs.

Although Yorkshire did not have to enforce the follow-on, Anthony McGrath went for the attacking option when he asked the home team to go in again, 193 runs behind.

Sussex surely had to make a better fist of it second time around and so it proved, Michael Yardy leading the way with an unbeaten 60 that included a six over mid-wicket off Matthew Hoggard and six fours.

Nash picked up from where he left off in the first innings and looked all set for another big score before he was the first to fall with the total on 88, caught at slip by Rudolph off Rashid.

Sussex slipped to 97-2 when Carl Hopkinson was lbw to Wainwright, but Yardy and Goodwin averted further damage to leave Sussex 75 behind with eight wickets in hand going into the final day of a nail-biting season.

DISPLAY OF THE DAY

Chris Nash

Made a splendid century, but one that may not be sufficient to prevent Yorkshire from recording a victory. Nash made 106 from 184 balls with 11 fours before becoming the first of David Wainwright's four victims of the day.