WARWICKSHIRE went back to the top of LV= County Championship Division One by taking just 33 minutes to complete a five-wicket victory against Surrey at the Kia Oval
Tim Ambrose took his overnight 74 to 89 not out and Rikki Clarke hit Stuart Meaker for three fours in an over as he went quickly to 40 not out after resuming on 18. In all, Ambrose and Clarke added an unbroken 74 for the sixth wicket, after Warwickshire resumed just 41 runs short of their target of 222 at 181 for five, and any outside chance of Surrey pulling off a shock victory soon disappeared.
It was Warwickshire’s fourth win in six matches and puts them back above Somerset, who temporarily went top when they beat Durham earlier in the week.
Chris Rogers’ first century since March ensured Middlesex eased to a draw against defending champions Lancashire at Liverpool.
Rogers, standing in as captain of the four-day team while Neil Dexter attempts to regain form, finished unbeaten on 138 not out off 269 balls.
Sam Robson contributed 50, while Joe Denly struck an unbeaten 61 as Middlesex reached 265 for one from 96 overs in the face of a token victory target of 429 when the players shook hands at 17:00hrs.
This result – just the second championship draw at Liverpool in 14 matches – means that despite Lancashire’s dominance in the contest, they are still without a win this season in seven matches.
At Hove, Riki Wessels posted a magnificent unbeaten 184 as Nottinghamshire took an 11-run lead over Sussex with six first-innings wickets in hand.
The second day of play saw Notts quickly take the final wicket to bowl their hosts out for 309 before Wessels stole the show.
Hampshire ripped through the Glamorgan tail to take victory by 31 runs in their Division Two clash at the Rose Bowl.
At lunch, Glamorgan had a shot at victory as they stood 114 runs shy of their target with six wickets left, but they collapsed from 168 for four to be all out for 231 as Kabir Ali and Liam Dawson took late wickets.
Northamptonshire also claimed victory by 121 runs as late wickets saw off Gloucestershire in the final session of the match.
James Middlebrook took five second-innings wickets at a cost of 63 runs in an outstanding afternoon’s work for the victors. (PA Sport)