The England and Wales cricket Board thanked Hampshire Cricket for helping to get the Twenty20 Cup off to the perfect start at the Rose Bowl last night.

A record crowd of more than 9,000 watched Hampshire beat Sussex by five runs on the biggest night in the Rose Bowl's brief history.

It was the perfect way to launch the Twenty20 Cup, which the ECB hope will go on to attract a new generation of cricket fans.

ECB spokesman Mark Hodgson said: "It was just what we wanted, a barmy evening, a full crowd and a last over finish.

"I don't think we could have dreamt up anything better. It was just a great evening in front of this ground's biggest crowd.

"From what I've heard everone seems to have had a really great night, it could not really have been any better. Hampshire have done a fantastic job in hosting and helping to market this game.

"This is a magnificent ground, it was the perfect place to have the first game because the fact that it's a bowl helps to create a great atmosphere which is what we had.

"It's also a perfect setting for the TV cameras and it being a south coast derby made it a great spectactle for Sky but it was the ground and the spectators that helped create the atmosphere we wanted, everyone was crammed in and the club should take a lot of credit."

Hampshire's next Twenty20 match is against Kent at Beckenham on Monday.

behind them after Sussex failed to score the ten runs they needed off the last over from Ed Giddins.

Manager Paul Terry said: "After playing for Hampshire for many years I'm used to tight finishes! The crowd was fantastic, they were very supportive. Hopefully people will come back. They've gone away after watching a short, exciting game, it'll be interesting to see how popular this becomes."