Sussex have a Dutch master of their own to admiretonight after Bas Zuiderent made a maiden first-classhundred to give his side the upper hand againstNottinghamshire after the first day of the CricinfoChampionship match at Hove

Bruce Talbot09-May-2001Sussex have a Dutch master of their own to admiretonight after Bas Zuiderent made a maiden first-classhundred to give his side the upper hand againstNottinghamshire after the first day of the CricinfoChampionship match at Hove.The 24-year-old, who only made his first one-daycentury for the county on Monday, maintained hisexcellent form by scoring an undefeated 122 to helphis side reach 310-5 before bad light forced theplayers off with two overs of the day remaining. His score is the highest in first-class cricket by a Dutchman.Zuiderent has got his chance because of injuries toskipper Chris Adams and Tony Cottey and grabbed hisopportunity with both hands as he repaired the earlydamage done by Notts’ burly South African seamer GregSmith.Smith removed both openers Richard Montgomerie andMurray Goodwin with just 15 on the board beforeZuiderent and left-hander Michael Yardy, in his firstChampionship appearance of the season, led a recoverywith a stand of 92 which ended on the stroke of lunchwhen Yardy edged Smith to second slip after making36.In the afternoon Zuiderent and Will House continuedthe rebuilding job with House making 46 before heedged Usman Afzaal’s occasional left-arm spin to thewicket-keeper.A 14th boundary clipped off his legs took Zuiderentto three figures off 233 balls in a shade over fivehours and, despite the murky light, he was stillgoing strong at the end.With him was Robin Martin-Jenkins who had made 38 off50 deliveries in an unbroken sixth-wicket stand of68. Smith was the pick of the Notts’ attack,maintaining a consistent line and length all day tofinish with 3-39 off 21 overs.