Saqlain takes five but Hampshire hold on

Hampshire were left clinging on for a draw at The Rose Bowl with Saqlain Mushtaq's 5 for 74 giving Surrey a chance of forcing a win in the final session, although the home side also finished close to their target. Set 281 in 75 overs after Matt Nicholson (73) and Jimmy Ormond (64 not out) took their stand to 140, Hampshire lost Michael Carberry early but appeared comfortable at 110 for 1. Saqlain then trapped Jimmy Adams and Michael Lumb lbw in quick succession as he started to pick off steady wickets. Brown was also lbw, six short of his century, leaving Sean Ervine (51) to hold the fort until he thumped a full toss to extra cover off Ormond, who was by now bowling offspin due to the fading light. Then Saqlain removed Dimitri Mascarenhas, caught at deep backward square, and Greg Lamb was out playing a reverse sweep as Hampshire kept going for the target. In the end it needed the injured Chris Tremlett to block 14 balls and young wicketkeeper Tim Burrows 18 to save the game, with Hampshire 34 runs short of a victory themselves.

Murray Goodwin's century helped Sussex avoid defeat against Somerset at Taunton, where the match finished in a subdued draw. The visitors began the day with nine wickets in hand and needed another 318, or to bat all day, to avoid an innings defeat. The flat final-day pitch helped their cause considerably as Goodwin and Michael Yardy (78) were hardly troubled by the Somerset attack. Eventually Yardy was caught at second slip trying to drive Steffan Jones, but Goodwin found another ally in Chris Adams and the pair's unbeaten 117-run stand continued to frustrate Somerset. The hosts took the new ball with 26 overs remaining but they found no further success, although Goodwin had a life on 84 when he edged between the wicketkeeper and first slip off Zander de Bruyn. When bad light stopped play at 4.45pm with Sussex on 272 for 3, Goodwin was unbeaten on 106 and Adams had 39. It was a disappointing end for Somerset, who had to settle for 12 points despite dominating the match with a huge first innings total of 557.

Team	Mat	Won	Lost	Tied	Draw	Aban	Pts
Nottinghamshire	4	2	1	0	1	0	56
Surrey	4	0	0	0	4	0	38
Sussex	4	0	0	0	4	0	36
Lancashire	4	1	1	0	2	0	34
Durham	3	1	1	0	1	0	33
Yorkshire	3	1	1	0	1	0	33
Hampshire	4	0	1	0	3	0	32
Kent	3	1	1	0	1	0	29
Somerset	3	0	0	0	3	0	27

Stephen Moore became the first batsman to pass 500 Championship runs as Worcestershire battled to a draw against Gloucestershire after following on at New Road. Moore made 84 before edging to gully in a far-improved batting display, while useful efforts from Vikram Solanki and Graeme Hick saved the game on another rain-hit day. Worcestershire's first innings ended on 214 when Simon Jones became legspinner Matthew Gitsham's maiden first-class wicket.

Derbyshire had to fight to secure a draw against Glamorgan as Alex Wharf and Jamie Dalrymple shared five wickets to keep the home side in with a chance of victory at Sophia Gardens. When Dominic Telo was caught by Jason Gillespie at mid-off, Derbyshire were still six behind. Dan Birch set his stall out for a rearguard effort, facing 136 balls for 43 until he was trapped lbw Dalrymple, who also removed Jonathan Clare to create some late alarms. But Graham Wagg and Jake Needham negotiated half an hour and fading light prevented David Hemp recalling his quick bowlers. Robert Croft was miserly all day, conceding 27 runs from 29 overs.

Team	Mat	Won	Lost	Tied	Draw	Aban	Pts
Leicestershire	4	1	0	0	3	0	48
Warwickshire	4	1	0	0	3	0	48
Essex	3	2	1	0	0	0	45
Derbyshire	4	1	0	0	3	0	39
Glamorgan	3	1	0	0	2	0	38
Worcestershire	4	0	0	0	4	0	38
Gloucestershire	3	0	1	0	2	0	25
Northamptonshire	4	0	2	0	2	0	25
Middlesex	3	0	2	0	1	0	22