Table Search + Sort Interaction

So I'm trying to figure out the best practice for interactions between a table search and sort. Here is a common data table scenario we have in our app.

  1. We have a table of users.

table of users

  1. The user can search on name (results will be returned immediately so there is no manual search button activation). The search results are sorted by relevance by default.

table with search filter

  1. The user can then activate a column sort that will appropriately change the order of filtered set of results.

a sorted order of filtered results

  1. When the user initiates a new search, the column sort is reset and we are returned to the default relevance sort.

enter image description here

My question is would the user expect the column filter to reset on changing the search or would they expect it to still be active?

If its the latter, then the challenge that I see is that there would be no way for the user to get back to the default 'relevance' sort once a column sort has been activated (short of refreshing the page).

Seems like the easiest solution would be to reset the column sort after each search.

Tags: