Surrey v Middlesex at the Kia Oval
Stumps, Day Three: Surrey 242 (Rayner 6-79) and 98-0 trail Middlesex 395 by 55 runs
Ollie Rayner maintained his incredible record against Surrey to finish with six wickets at the Kia Oval, compounding the hosts to a follow-on on Day Three.
Rayner, who took 15 against the same opposition in 2013, took the last three wickets but Surrey rallied around to lose just four wickets in the day, but still trail by 55 runs heading into Day Four.
Ben Foakes offered resistance with an unbeaten 59, while skipper Gareth Batty made 38. A deficit of 153, just four short of avoiding the follow-on, Surrey openers Rory Burns and Arun Harinath reached 98 without alarm, but with one more day to face, Middlesex are by far the better placed.
Somerset v Yorkshire at Taunton
Stumps, Day Three: Yorkshire 306-9 (Lyth 106) trail Somerset 562-7d by 256 runs
A dramatic Yorkshire collapse saw the champions lose five wickets for 11 runs to give Somerset a sniff of victory heading into the final day at Taunton.
Yorkshire had meandered to 226-4 before the wickets fell, with Jack Leaning, Gary Ballance and finally Liam Plunkett all caught behind.
Adil Rashid was needlessly run-out attempting a third scamper, while Andrew Hodd was bowled by Tim Groenewald, who ended with three wickets.
Steven Patterson (32*) and Jack Brooks (34*) offered resistance with an unbroken 69-run partnership, but Yorkshire, still 256 runs behind, face the follow-on and the risk of a rare defeat.
Nottinghamshire v Warwickshire at Trent Bridge
Stumps, Day Three: Nottinghamshire 383 and 21-3 require another 206 runs to beat Warwickshire 373 and 236 (Chopra 82; Fletcher 4-25, Patel 4-71)
A Specsavers County Championship game at Trent Bridge that, for two and a half days, seemed to be drifting towards a draw came spectacularly to life in the final session of the third day.
From 180-4 in their second innings, Warwickshire subsided to 236 all out. Luke Fletcher and Samit Patel, both living proof that the race is not always to the fittest or slimmest, each took four wickets. With a very gettable target of 227 to win, Notts then stumbled badly in the eight overs possible before the close, ending on 21-3, with left armer Keith Barker grabbing two wickets.
Earlier, Notts had led by ten runs on first innings. Warwickshire then owed much in their second effort to Varun Chopra who compiled an excellent 82 and Jonathan Trott who belied his reputation as a steady accumulator by hitting 59 off 60 balls, including, at one point, seven boundaries in 12 balls.
What had been a good batting pitch for the first two days is now offering occasional variable bounce and some turn so Warwickshire may well fancy their chances tomorrow – that is, until they look at the gloomy weather forecast for the Nottingham area.
Durham v Lancashire at Emirates Riverside
Stumps, Day Three: Durham 411 and 239-4 (Borthwick 103*) lead Lancashire 326 (McCarthy 5-70) by 324 runs
Scott Borthwick completed back-to-back centuries as Durham confirmed their position of superiority over Lancashire in the North East.
Borthwick became the first man in a whole two matches (after Keaton Jennings) to complete the feat, eventually closing on 103.
Barry McCarthy earlier romped through Lancashire to claim a maiden five-fer in just his third first-class game, taking 5-70 as the visitors finished 85 in arrears.
Durham resume 324 in advantage when Borthwick, alongside Paul Collingwood, resume tomorrow, in a bid to inflict a first defeat of the season for Lancashire.
