Kent’s visually-impaired side were beaten at home by defending David Townley Memorial Twenty20 Cup winners Sussex Sharks on Saturday.

Stand-in Sussex skipper Ian Morris lost the toss at the start of the First-Round match and Tom Barton, captain of Division 2 Kent, asked the visitors to bat first.

On a tricky slightly two-paced pitch, the away team started cautiously and lost their first wicket when Charlton Davis took a smart catch at fine leg to dismiss Mark Bond for 25.

Sussex’s innings was anchored by Joe Harrison, who carried his bat for an unbeaten 63 from 53 balls, bringing up his 50 with a cheeky reverse-swept four through third man.

Si Ledwith joined Harrison and produced a blistering 60 not out off just 36 balls, which included seven fours and a monster six over long-on, as the Sussex innings closed on 183-2.

The Kent reply began very steadily, before losing opening batsman Lee Robshaw for 34 with the score on 59 in the 11th over.

With the home side behind the rate, they struggled to reach the boundary - Marcus Kipling’s four overs for just 11 with two wickets kept the asking rate rising.

Barton’s unbeaten 44 anchored Kent’s innings, but none of the other batsmen could get going and their innings closed on 108-3.

In terms of playing equipment for visually-impaired cricket, the major adaptation is the ball, which is significantly larger than a standard cricket ball and filled with ball bearings to provide audible cues.

The size allows partially-sighted players to see the ball and the contents allow blind players to hear it.

The stumps also are larger.