Chris Nash is determined to end Sussex’s four-year trophy drought and he spoke to Daniel White about the hurdles ahead at the County Ground
Expectations are high at Hove this season.
After four seasons without a trophy, the Sussex team have been through a transitional period and are well aware that the need for silverware is growing ever stronger.
“From a team point of view, a lot has been said about how we haven’t won a trophy in four years,” begins Sussex vice-captain Chris Nash. “Having lost a lot of players back in 2009-10, we’ve got a new set of players who have grown together and we’re ready to go again.
“So the big thing this year is that we want to win something, we want to push really hard for trophies and we feel like we can do that, we’ve got a lot of experience in the team and a lot of talent.”
The Cuckfield-born Nash first represented the county at the age of seven and was a part of The Golden Decade squad, which is regarded as the club’s most successful period in its history.
The right-hand batsman is now a stalwart at the County Ground as well as being one of the most reliable batters throughout the squad; finishing fifth-highest run scorer in Division One last year, and he knows how they can right their wrongs from 2013.
“We did talk about it,” he explains. “If we had performed well at home, we would have won the championship; we were phenomenal away from home and once we got our home form sorted we were suddenly a different team. So we need to play better at Hove, we need to win games at Hove and make it very hard to come here and get a result.”
The 31-year-old missed the first chunk of this season after having surgery on a burst appendix in winter and, following his return to the side, he is confident that he can help Sussex push on and capture their first trophy since 2009.
“Division One of the County Championship is one of the best domestic four-day competitions around,” he states. “It’s a very tight division where relegation can happen very quickly and also you can be challengers very quickly.
“If you do get on a roll and start winning games, you’re going to be up there, alternatively, it can happen the other way around so it is very tight, all nine teams can win it, that’s the reality of it, but everyone’s aim is to win all three trophies and we’re no different!”