Harry Finch and Luke Wells settled Sussex into the second day at Wantage Road as the match settled after a helter-skelter opening day.
At lunch, the visitors were 104-2 leading by 51.
In only the second over of the day, further wickets began to fall as Phil Salt dragged Brett Hutton into his leg stump before Hutton took out Laurie Evans’ off stump three balls later.
But thereafter, Finch and Wells steadied as two batsmen finally got the grips with conditions. Northants still bowled well and Ben Sanderson found three edges - two from Finch that landed short of the slips cordon and one from Wells that did carry to Hutton at second slip but was shelled low to his right.
Wells played two splendid straight drives but Finch was the more attractive of the two, striking eight fours in going past 50 for the sixth time this summer in 63 balls.
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