Looking for a happy ending to hard times

County cricket can be a strange and capricious world, but the reality of a probable title-decider at Hove is remarkable even by such standards, considering the relative recent fortunes of the two counties. Sussex are the champions, and are seeking their third title in five season, so their presence would not be cause for any great surprise. However such an eventuality seemed unlikely back in April, as they crashed to successive innings defeats against Kent and Wawrickshire. Michael Yardy was unavailable, his finger broken in the curtain raiser against MCC; Matt Prior likewise, at the behest of the England selectors.

At that stage of the season, Yorkshire fans were in a state of delirium; Surrey, Durham and Worcestershire had all submitted to heavy defeats, while fancied Hampshire escaped with a draw. It had been a swift turnaround from the circumstances six months previously, when the club was in straits calamitous even when set against the frequent disasters which litter the club's history, ancient and modern. Darren Lehmann, who had literally preserved Yorkshire's Division 1 status off his own bat, scoring a triple century in the survive or die match against Durham, and a top-drawer overseas pro in every way, had lost the battle against ageing bones and was unable to commit to another full campaign. Joining him through the exit door was Michael Lumb, off to the greener grass of Hampshire's Rose Bowl, and, so it seemed Anthony McGrath. No-one had been more committed to the cause than McGrath, a loyal servant to the club for over a decade. But like so many Yorkshire greats of the past, the back-biting and inner machinations had tipped him over the edge and he resolved to cut his ties with the club. Craig White extended his contract, but terminated his leadership, so Yorkshire had no captain. David Byas, cause for some of the unrest, also departed, so they had no coach.

Where two had been, Yorkshire sought to fill the void with one man. Ironically enough, that was the then Sussex captain Chris Adams. Captaining the side, acting as head coach and shoring up a flimsy middle-order were the tasks assigned to him, the reciprocal being a four year contract and an enticing financial offer. Perhaps bearing in mind the job that faced him, one can understand while Adams took one look and fled back to homely Hove (stopping on the way to have his photo taken holding a Yorkshire shirt), which is why he is the still Sussex captain. But his departure left the club in a tricky situation; as ever, Geoffrey Boycott homed in on the nub of the issue - Yorkshire had spent the months where they could have found the players they now needed persuading Adams and that time had been wasted and Adams had not only left them up a creek but taken their paddle with him back to Sussex. The batting appeared to begin and end with Younus Khan; the bowling with Jason Gillespie - not an appealing prospect when his first season with the club was taken into account. Younus could not be captain, as he was going to be away the World Cup (as was the assumption), neither could McGrath as he was leaving.

But while the reaction of most Yorkshire fans to Chris Adams' U-turn ranged from anger to outright hostility, they might well now consider a pilgrimage to Hove to kiss his feet. Realising that the middle-order batting was set to resemble that of the previous year's Second XI, a mixture of hard-headed dealing from Chief Exec. Stuart Regan and Geoffrey Boycott's contacts in South Africa helped bring Jaques Rudolph to the club on a three year Kolpak deal. It was not popular, and fiercely contested by other counties, but at the end of it all, Yorkshire had secured the services of a Test-class batsman, who has proved over the course of the season to be their best. However, the captaincy options were still thin on the ground - the fact that Jason Gillespie was probably the second horse in the race is a fair illustration of the situation. Yet an amazing winter for the club had one more surprise left in it, and it concerned the nature of a two-year contract offered by Essex; it was unsigned, and the name on it was Darren Gough. With his old foe Byas out of the way, Gough did not need too much persuading to make the emotional return once the captaincy option was on the table. Gough alone would have been a significant capture, but when his signing reaped the immediate benefits of mollifying McGrath and provoking an extraordinary reconciliation as well as luring former coach Martyn Moxon back from Durham, no-one could quite believe the transformation that the club had undergone in a matter of months. And when Pakistan's dismal World Cup exit meant Younus would be available from the start of the season, optimism knew no bounds. It was cup runneth over stuff, especially when Surrey were knocked over on their own turf, leading to three wins in the first four championship games.

It couldn't last, could it? Well yes and no - despite having won just one more match since the initial spurt, Yorkshire find themselves at the top of the table, albeit having played a game more than nearest rivals Sussex and two more than Hampshire. After rain interrupted their mid-season, with none of their four matches after the 20-20 break going beyond a third innings, consecutive losses to Lancashire and Worcestershire looked to have scuppered their title chances. The latter result was a real body-blow - Worcestershire were (and still are) propping up the table, winless all season. However, enterprising captaincy from Vikram Solanki, declaring behind on first innings after the weather had taken time out of the game, gave his opposite number the chance to reciprocate, which he did a little too generously as Worcestershire chased down 337 with ease on the final afternoon.

However, just as Yorkshire looked to have played themselves out of contention, fate took a hand: as Sussex were sat in a dressing room at The Oval unable to get on the field for a single ball over four days, the Scarborough crowd were witnessing the utter destruction of Wawrickshire, who went down to a crushing innings defeat, twice bowled out cheaply and made to suffer in the field as Rudolph amassed a double-century and Bresnan his third ton of the season. Maximum points to Yorkshire; squat all to Sussex except the realisation that the title race was wide-open again.

The clash between the two teams in early September is the next Championship game for both sides, and should either one emerge as winner, the title is likely to go with them. Yorkshire have relied on their batsmen a lot this term, reflected by their mammoth amount of batting bonus points, the factor which is keeping them at the top of the table. And after the top order had begun to falter recently, they have been reinforced by the arrival of two Test captains - incumbent English leader Michael Vaughan and recently departed Pakistani skipper Inzamam-Ul-Haq, a replacement for compatriot Younus Khan. Anthony McGrath has returned to the form of last season after a shaky start, and Yorkshire will rely on him for solidity at the top, alongside Vaughan. Batsman of the season Rudolph is the fourth Test player in the top 5, and has combined well with a strong lower order, improved keeper-batsman Gerard Brophy and England future hopefuls Rashid and Bresnan, both in the runs of late. Sussex boast less international pedigree, but are nevertheless packed with experienced practitioners, Goodwin and Adams the best bets for heavy runs, backed up by Yardy and Montgomerie, enjoying his best season for years at the top of the order. The lower-order also shows up well, with Hodd deputising effectively for Prior, as well as all-rounders Martin-Jenkins and 20 over star Luke Wright.

Yorkshire's opening pair with the ball is an exciting mix of England past and present, captain Gough alongside Hoggard. Bresnan and Shahzad are the back-up seamers, while the trump card is spinning prodigy Adil Rashid. Although his season has tailed off with the ball after a turbo-charged start, he is still a serious threat. Should he be looking to learn, in his two opposite numbers there are no better examples as masters of their respective crafts. Mushtaq Ahmed has been top wicket-taker for Sussex in every season since he joined in 2003, and nothing has changed this term, 69 already having fallen victim. He is now joined by the other man who sustained Pakistani spin bowling in the 1990s, Saqlain Mushtaq: if Shane Warne saved the art of leg-spin, the same must be said of Saqlain as regards off-spin, with his invention of what is now known as the doosra, but to start off with was just Saqlain's mystery ball. The last three years have been a real struggle for him - dropped by Pakistan, he found himself abandoned by his home country, and has finally emerged with Sussex, alongside his old accomplice. With the Pakistani spin-twins, expect the Hove pitch to be conducive to turn (make that a raging bunsen), although Yorkshire can counter with not only Rashid but Imran Tahir, replacement for Jason Gillespie.

The two counties can find much in common over the last year, not least the man who could have been leading out either team. But for all that shared experience, only one team can lift the trophy, and the forthcoming match represents the best chance for one team to deliver a knockout blow. Yorkshire have the big-names, Sussex the men who know what it takes to win a Championship. Only after four days will Chris Adams know whether he made the right choice.