Old hands guide Middlesex to victory

Middlesex cemented their position as promotion pacemakers in the CricInfo County Championship with a resounding win against one of their nearest challengers.

Set 382 for an unlikely victory, Warwickshire were given a chance by a dashing 77 from Mark Wagh but folded to their first defeat of the season after a grim afternoon session.

From 170 for 4, when Wagh was tempted in flight by a ball from Phil Tufnell, they were dismissed for 252 and comprehensively beaten by 129 runs.

Middlesex's old hands shaped their third win in eight games in Division Two. Angus Fraser made the first breakthrough by dismissing Ian Bell with the last ball on Friday and Michael Powell with his eighth on the final morning.

Then Middlesex looked to Tufnell for inspiration as Wagh and David Hemp threatened to take the game away from them in a rousing partnership of 107 in 18 overs.

Wagh's strokeplay was witheringly effective as he took three boundaries in an over on three occasions, and in all he collected 16 fours from 68 balls in 86 minutes.

The former Oxford University captain finally mistimed a drive to mid-on and Fraser returned to bowl Dominic Ostler on the stroke of lunch. Then it was back to Tufnell for the crucial wicket of Hemp, who top-edged to mid-on after making 61.

Chad Keegan supplied another thrust by removing Dougie Brown and Ashley Giles in quick succession and Tufnell (4 for 57) accounted for Vasbert Drakes and Mo Sheikh with catches at short leg by Ben Hutton.

Keith Piper, suffering from a virus, delayed the result by leaving his sick-bed to make an unbeaten 20 but Middlesex won with nearly two hours to spare when Keegan wrapped up a return of 3 for 52.