Delray Rawlins put another feather in his cap after he and his Sussex team-mates were crowned the Second XI Twenty20 champions.

Sussex beat Hampshire by 24 runs at Arundel, West Sussex, with Rawlins playing an integral role in his team’s triumph.

The Bermudian all-rounder stroked 40 batting at No 4 in Sussex’s total of 171 for six and then claimed two wickets with his left-arm spin as Hampshire were restricted to 149 for five in reply.

“It’s actually a great feeling to win and obviously to do it so convincingly is quite nice as well,” Rawlins said. “To get my first title in my first year is quite nice and a bit of special feeling.”

Rawlins also capped a superb fielding display by Sussex after combining with team-mate Jonty Jenner to execute a stunning relay catch at cow corner.

“My team-mate ran around to take the catch and I went with him because I knew he was going to go over the rope,” Rawlins said. “I went with him and told him, ‘I am here’ and he threw it straight back at me.”

Sussex won ten of their 14 games during the regular T20 season and reached the final after they beat Lancashire in the semi-final with four balls to spare. Asked what was the key to his team’s success in the tournament, Rawlins said: “We just stuck to our plan and did what we’ve done all year. It seemed to work all year so we said, ‘Why can’t it work in the final’.

“Once we got to the final everyone felt we would win, so it didn’t really exceed my expectations. I just had a feeling we would win on the day.”

Jason Swift, the Sussex Second XI coach, said his players demonstrated a maturity belying their youthfulness.

“It was extremely satisfying to see the team perform the way they did at Arundel,” Swift said.

“To reproduce the way they’d played all season in a finals day in front of a decent-sized crowd showed tremendous maturity for a young side.

“The boys came up against some very experienced professionals in the final and showed what a talented group they are.

“The team played brilliantly as a whole, but a special mention for Angus Robson for his 90 in the semi-final, as well as Luke Wells who got us off to a flyer in the final and Harry [Finch] and Delray [Rawlins] who then kept the momentum going.

“The bowlers never let Hampshire get on top. Adam Barton’s spell was phenomenal and Abi [Sakande] had a huge influence on the match with his two wickets in two balls to get rid of Adams and Holland.”