Good night!
Not much to report on a wet sponge of a day. Play only at three games.
At Lord’s, Tim Murtagh pocketed two early wickets from the Nursery End, to make it five in his last match at home, before Will Rhodes (95) and Danny Briggs (71) put on 133 for the seventh wicket. Then the rain came down. Warwickshire put their feet up with a lead of 107. Ryan Higgins went off with a side strain, and Middlesex remain in relegation peril.
At The Oval, Karun Nair’s feisty and fun 144 not out kept Surrey at bay, his 114-run partnership with Tom Taylor the cause of much south London frustration. Nair had time to slash Tom Lawes for a joyous one-handed six before the bad light arrived, leaving Surrey looking over their shoulders at Essex.
At Chelmsford, second-placed Essex declared on 447 for 9, with three batting points in the bag – cancelled out by Surrey’s three bowling points at The Oval. Matt Critchley was unlucky to fall for 99; before Simon Harmer and Umesh Yadav played whoopee with big-hitting half centuries. Hampshire were 10-0 when the bad light fell. Essex, 18 points behind Surrey, need a win to be in with a chance of a realistic tilt at the title.
And that’s all from me. We’ll be back at The Oval, hopeful of some action, tomorrow. Till then, have a lovely evening.
Updated
Close of play scores
DIVISION ONE
Chelmsford: Essex 447-9 dec v Hampshire 10-0 play abandoned for the day
Old Trafford: Lancashire v Nottinghamshire play abandoned for the day
Lord’s: Middlesex 121 v Warwickshire 228-6 play abandoned for the day
Taunton: Somerset 214-2 v Kent play abandoned for the day
The Oval: Surrey v Northamptonshire 351-9 play abandoned for the day
DIVISION TWO
The County Ground: Derbyshire v Sussex play abandoned for the day
Grace Road: Leicestershire v Yorkshire 155-9 play abandoned for the day
New Road: Worcestershire 104-1 v Durham play abandoned for the day
