Earlier they had dismissed Worcestershire for 185 the visitors losing their last five wickets

Earlier, they had dismissed Worcestershire for 185, the visitors losing their last five wickets for 29, after resuming at 70 for 2 overnight. It left Warwickshire with a modest target of 160 to claim maximum points.Ironically, Knight (83) and opening partner Mark Wagh (63 not out), were largely untroubled in putting on 152 in 37 overs, although it was another shooter that stopped Knight 17 runs short of a century, from carrying his bat.. Tim Lamb yesterday confirmed that he will stand down from his position as chief executive of the England and Wales Cricket Board. “County cricket is supposed to prepare players for Test matches, but all you are going to get out of a pitch like that is a broken thumb or a broken toe.

Despite that, Warwickshire escaped with nothing more than a “below average” mark.The verdict, delivered by England and Wales Cricket Board pitch liaison officer, David Hughes, on behalf of a three-man panel, was at odds with how Tom Moody, Worcestershire’s director of cricket, assessed the condition of groundsman Steve Rouse’s track.”It was a poor surface that you should not be playing first-class cricket on,” Moody said. But Hutton and Shah steadied the ship before the former fell to Anderson in the final over.. Warwickshire’s joy at moving at least temporarily into pole position in the County Championship, was tempered by a three-hour wait before being cleared of preparing an unfit pitch after they had defeated their neighbours Worcestershire with more than a day to spare. Shah persisted with his young spinners to defensive fields for another 35 overs after he could have claimed the new ball. Chris Peploe, the left-armer, kept Mal Loye in check by bowling over the wicket into the rough and when Loye was seventh out, slicing the new ball to cover, his 98 had taken 133 overs.But it was the off-spin of Jamie Dalrymple that removed the armament of Stuart Law and Carl Hooper inside eight overs and then Warren Hegg.Middlesex were back at the crease shortly after tea, 25 behind, and soon lost Sven Koenig to James Anderson. They have exploited every Lancashire weakness and the 109-run stand between Ben Hutton and Owais Shah seems to have guaranteed a draw.
Lancashire’s initial aim was to eliminate the deficit of 130 and build up a lead. Unfortunately, at that point, the paceman James Ormond came on to bowl his off-breaks.He floated one up to Carberry, who had reached his half-century, and the left-hander pushed at it to present Alistair Brown at slip with a simple catch, and leave Kent and Key to build on the slender 14-run lead they trooped off with..

Middlesex have gone a long way towards holding the favourites to a draw for a second time this summer. But with the abundance of batting riches at their disposal, the selectors can afford to, and most likely will, overlook the Kent opener. Key will just have to keep on scoring big until the ‘No’ votes are crushed by the sheer weight of runs ­ to date he has scored 800 and some at a fat average of 118. He was ably supported by Michael Carberry, the pair putting on 126 for the fourth wicket, a total which brought the two sides level. The 20th century of his first-class career in the second innings was his fourth hundred in his last half a dozen innings, form that has to catch the eye of the selectors. He it was who took Kent as close as they got ­ 240 runs behind on the first innings ­ thanks to a fine knock of 86.Key was on the field for all but 35 minutes of yesterday’s play. His remorselessness eroded Surrey’s enthusiasm and expectations and underlined the qualities that he could bring to the England Test team ­ discipline, doggedness, power, timing, placement, concentration.