Sussex v Yorkshire: Yorkshire dig in at seaside and hold back tide

In 2008, Yorkshire emerged with an improbable draw after slipping to 80-6 in their first innings.

Centuries by Adil Rashid and David Wainwright hoisted them to 400-9 declared in a comeback that staved off relegation.

In 2009, Yorkshire won by 156 runs despite being 104-5 following another first-innings collapse.

Ajmal Shahzad (88) and Wainwright (85 not out) lifted them to 403 all-out before Wainwright claimed nine wickets in the match and Matthew Hoggard captured a hat-trick.

Yesterday, on their latest visit to the County Ground, Yorkshire were up to their old tricks once again.

Despite conceding a first-innings deficit of 275 and being made to follow-on, they escaped with a share of the spoils as Sussex were thwarted in spirited style.

This time they did not even need Wainwright, the left-arm spinner omitted in favour of Rashid.

Instead it was another left-hander, Gary Ballance, who played the decisive role, his county-best 73 not out seeing Yorkshire to 314-8, a lead of just 39, by the time stumps were drawn at 5.47pm.

It was a valiant innings by the 21-year-old Zimbabwean, who has yet to register a Championship hundred but who did his case for a regular place no harm.

With Adam Lyth chomping at the bit for a return to the first team, Ballance is under pressure to justify his spot.

He did so with an innings that encompassed 231 minutes and 207 balls and showed he has the character to go with his obvious class.

Yorkshire’s escape was a skin-of-the-teeth job, Ballance and Steve Patterson batting out the final 12.2 overs in gritty fashion, and the ultimate outcome should not paper over the cracks of what had gone before.

Yorkshire were second-best for much of the contest and so nearly slipped to a fifth defeat in seven games and a third in succession.

With this match marking the halfway stage of their Championship campaign, they are locked in a relegation fight after managing only one win so far – away to Worcestershire in their opening match.

Worcestershire’s surprise victory over Nottinghamshire yesterday saw them climb to second-bottom and move to within 14 points of third-bottom Yorkshire, over whom they have a game in hand; bottom club Hampshire (33 points) have two games in hand on Yorkshire.

Yorkshire went into the final day on 29-2, 246 runs behind.

They faced a tough assignment, but the weather was sunny and warm and the pitch was still the same true surface on which Sussex had amassed 548-4dec.

A good start seemed imperative and Yorkshire got it through Anthony McGrath and Andrew Gale, who survived the first hour before McGrath was trapped lbw on the back foot by Monty Panesar.

McGrath looked in fine fettle on his way to 44 from 71 balls with eight fours, his performance a timely reminder there is plenty of life left in the old dog after a slow start to the season in which he has been hampered by injury.

Gale looked less secure than his partner, the Yorkshire captain having a let-off on nine when he edged Wayne Parnell to third slip, where Kirk Wernars grassed a straightforward chance.

Gale lasted until the stroke of lunch, whereupon he was bowled round his legs by Panesar as Yorkshire went into the break on 118-4.

After the interval, Jonny Bairstow played an innings of impressive fluency in company with Ballance.

Bairstow took a particular liking to Panesar, whom he lashed for three fours and a swept six in an over that also contained two wides.

The wicketkeeper struck 11 fours in reaching his half-century from 59 balls and looked odds-on for his third hundred of the summer.

But Panesar got his revenge when he had him caught for 76, Chris Nash running in from deep square-leg after Bairstow top-edged a sweep.

Following the departure of the man in form (Bairstow had scored 205, 83, 1, 136, 80 and 28 in his previous Championship innings), Sussex might have thought the hard work was done.

Yorkshire were 193-5, still 82 behind, and one wondered if the rest might crumble.

But Ballance and Rashid had other ideas, taking the score to 261-5 at tea, just 14 shy of making Sussex bat again.

Rashid fell to the first ball after the interval – caught at bat-pad off Panesar – and Ajmal Shahzad was lbw to Amjad Khan as Yorkshire subsided to 278-7.

When Panesar bowled Ryan Sidebottom to claim his fifth wicket of the innings at the start of the last hour, Yorkshire were 289-8, just 14 in front.

But Patterson followed his maiden half-century in the first innings with an unbeaten two from 41 balls before the players shook hands.