BRETT D’Oliveira continued his remarkable transformation from spin bowler to opening batsman as Worcestershire piled up 382-4 on the opening day of the Specsavers County Championship Division Two match with Sussex.

The 24-year-old was out for 99 at New Road after scores of 128 against Essex and 202 not out against Glamorgan.

England Lions prospect Joe Clarke shared some of D’Oliveira’s frustration in missing a hundred when he was dismissed for 82, after making 135 against Gloucestershire and 133 against Glamorgan.

Sussex may have thought D’Oliveira was out first ball but their appeal for a catch behind the wicket off Ollie Robinson was rejected and the innings was 50 overs old before he was caught by Harry Finch when cutting a ball from Luke Wells.

He is established in the new role with 598 first-class runs this season, having made 122 in the opening fixture against Oxford MCCU.

His hot streak even spilled into the Birmingham and District League on Saturday, when he made 150 for local club Ombersley.

Strong on the back foot, punching a number of his 13 boundaries from short of a length, D’Oliveira made the most of a good batting surface by completing a century stand with captain Daryl Mitchell in a gloriously sunny and warm first session.

Steve Magoffin was the one bowler to impose restrictions, his 12 overs in two spells yielding only 19 runs, but it was largely trouble-free for the batsmen until Mitchell, who won the toss, miscued a pull off Stuart Whittingham low to Magoffin at mid-on on 43.

The first pair put on 113, the fifth time D’Oliveira has been involved in a three-figure partnership in the championship this summer.

Sussex plugged away and, having removed D’Oliveira, finally claimed their first bowling bonus point soon after tea when Alexei Kervezee, in his first championship appearance for nearly 12 months, was bowled by Whittingham after making 29 in a stand of 54 with Clarke.

There was a scare for Clarke when a crashing drive only just cleared Lewis Hatchett at mid-on.

But a hundred was looking there for the taking before he got himself out, popping up the simplest of return catches to Wells.

In a measured innings, Clarke hit nine fours from 117 balls.

Sussex’s hopes of a significant breakthrough were blunted by an unbroken partnership of 101 in which Tom Kohler-Cadmore (43 not out) and Ross Whiteley (54 not out) both survived chances.

Whiteley came into form with seven fours and a six from 63 balls in his first half-century of the season.