County matches in progress

The champagne will have to remain on ice for a while yet as Surrey went down by 23 runs to Essex in their floodlit National League match. A win at Colchester would have given Surrey the Second Division title and promotion. But as they are leading the race for the First Division county championship as well, they, perhaps, have in mind a double celebration closer together.

Lancashire, also with championship ambitions, were twenty points behind the leaders, in third place, when they began their current high scoring game against Leicestershire. John Crawley with 129 not out, which included 17 boundaries and is his highest score of the season, has led the side to 334 for three. However, unless they can take a substantial lead and dismiss the home side for far fewer than their 372 in the first innings, they will not be closing the points gap at the top of the table.

Hampshire's woes continue at the bottom of the table with being dismissed for 156 on a day when sixteen wickets fell at Canterbury. Paul Nixon's 134 took Kent to 323 and with 83 for five in the second innings, they are likely to have such a lead that Hampshire will be struggling to save the match.

Occupying the two positions above Hampshire are Derbyshire and Durham. The latters chances of getting out of the relegation zone with a victory took a knock when Derbyshire dismissed them for 144 and then followed up their 167 in the first innings with 346 for 6 in which there were two unbeaten centuries, by Mathew Dowman and Dominic Cork. The two sharing an unbroken stand of 225. This gives Derbyshire a chance of their first win since June.

The talk of the Second Division at present is Glamorgan's colossal total of 718 for three declared, their highest total since their entry into the county championship in 1921.

The man who led them to this unique achievement was Steve James who took his overnight score of 193 not out to an unbeaten 309. Not only is he the first Glamorgan player to score five double centuries but also the first to hit a triple century which came from 491 balls and included no less than 41 boundaries. It was a heartbreaking day for Sussex bowlers, nine of whom were used. Not a little demoralizing for Sussex to be going into the third day with 5 first innings wickets standing and requiring a further 457 runs only to avoid the follow-on.

While Gloucestershire battle it out at the bottom of the table with Middlesex, they must have uppermost on their mind this Saturday's showpiece NatWest Final against Warwickshire who went down by nine wickets to Worcestershire. The victory pushes the Malvern county three places up into second position and a strong contender for promotion.