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Woah, oh...

Another bonkers day of County Championship cricket comes to an end. Don't you just love this game? Or hate it at times of course.

Rishi Patel scored his first top flight century in first-class cricket to claw Leicestershire back into the game in a high-scoring contest at Surrey.

Joe Clarke also hit a ton for Notts as they took control against Glamorgan, as did Craig Overton for Somerset, who are on top at Essex.

Northants' Nathan McSweeney and Durham's David Bedingham bagged hundreds as those two sides racked up huge scores in Division Two. Ben McKinney produced a massive 244 for Durham as well.

Runs, runs, runs. But also wickets aplenty as we head towards results in most of our games.

Day three has a lot to live up to and surely it will?

Thank you as always for following along today and for your excellent messages. Keep them coming in again tomorrow.

We will be back to do it all again. Until then, goodnight!

Division One

Chelmsford: Essex 149 & 131-3 v Somerset 348 - Essex trail by 68 runs

Trent Bridge: Nottinghamshire 279 & 284-9 v Glamorgan 113 - Notts lead by 450 runs

The Oval: Surrey 520 v Leicestershire 350-3 - Leicestershire trail by 170 runs

Hove: Sussex 204 v Warwickshire 267 & 154-5 - Warwickshire lead by 217 runs

Headingley: Yorkshire 177 v Hampshire 251 & 93-2 - Hampshire lead by 167 runs

Division Two

Bristol: Gloucestershire 168-8 v Durham 605-5 dec - Gloucestershire trail by 437 runs

Canterbury: Kent 119-6 v Northamptonshire 684-2 dec - Kent trail by 565 runs

Old Trafford: Lancashire 351 v Derbyshire 235-3 - Derbyshire trail by 116 runs

Lord's: Middlesex 183 v Worcestershire 191 & 200-7 - Worcestershire lead by 208 runs

Ben Coad sends the final over of this rain-affected day from the rugby ground end as Harry Duke stands up to the stumps to keep Tom Prest back in his crease.

Prest is close to chopping on to his stumps with the third delivery (cue hands on heads all round) but steers the fourth with a back foot punch across the outfield to the ropes in front of an empty Western Terrace.

Two dots see out the day as he finishes on 31 from 33 balls on a day which Hants will be the happier of the two sides.

Yorks' early and late collapses – 48-4 late on day one and 3-20 from Kyle Abbott after lunch as the hosts lost 6-40 to finish 177 all out, have dictated the balance in this match.

Nick Gubbins and Tom Prest, as in the first innings, have given the visitors a solid platform and with Jake Lehmann still to come, Ben Brown's side are well on top.

Hants have a lead of 167 which, with just two wickets down, leaves Yorks needing a blizzard of wickets in the morning.

The Glos tail survive a couple more overs as they limp into day three 437 runs adrift of Durham and staring a second consecutive innings defeat.

There have been weather hold-ups today, but you wouldn't know by the score as Durham have been ruthless with bat and ball.

A disastrous end to a thoroughly miserable day for Kent as they lose two wickets in the same James Sales over.

First, Kent captain Daniel Bell-Drummond was strangled down the legside and two balls later, Matt Milnes was run out after a disastrous mix-up mid-pitch with Joey Evison - a dismissal to display Kent's scrambled minds.

The home side end the day a barely believable 565 runs behind with only four wickets left.

That is after Northants rocked up a mammoth 684-2 dec in which all four batters scored hundreds for the first time in the county's history, led by Luke Procter's 261 not out.

It is hard to believe with two days left how the visitors will not win this game, unless rain intervenes.

This game continues to rest in the balance after that late Middlesex burst led by Ryan Higgins.

The first session was about even as the hosts advanced from 91-6 to 183 all out, eight behind, as Zafar Gohar hit 42.

The middle session was all Worcestershire as openers Dan Lategan and Jake Libby both hit half-centuries.

Yet behind those two and from 179-1, the Pears lost 6-19 and they now lead by 208, but with only three wickets intact.

A day of many very poor soft dismissals from batters throwing their hands at deliveries with no foot movement or consideration that they could leave the ball that was not going on to hit their stumps.

Earlier Sussex had lost 8-72 before Ollie Robinson and Jack Carson both top scored with 39 as Sussex conceded a first innings deficit of 63.

Rob Yates became the third player in the match, all Bears, to reach 50, his 75* off 124 balls has helped Warwickshire to a lead of over 200 which could be tricky to chase over days three and four.

A great effort to get all 96 overs in today.

If you can get to Hove tomorrow it is free entry! Make the most of a great initiative from a club that are struggling financially!

Somerset's day against the league leaders despite Paul Walter and Matt Critchley's pair of unbeaten half-centuries reducing their deficit down to 68.

Craig Overton earlier notched his first-class best 141 the day after his 32nd birthday, but Somerset agonisingly missed out on that pesky third batting bonus point by just two runs this week, Jake Ball again the last wicket offender.

Wiaan Mulder still yet to bat for Essex is a concern for the home fans who are yet to get much reward on their investment in him as overseas this campaign.

Still could be a result on day three tomorrow, but this pitch is getting slightly better to bat on as the game goes on.

50 for Matt Critchleypublished at 18:41 BST

18:41 BST

Essex 149 & 129-3 v Somerset 348

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After his career-best with bat and ball last week it was a quiet first innings for the northern leggie-bat.

He gets to his half-century off 73 balls with a stunning cover drive for four from the bowling of Jake Ball.

Nine fours in this attacking knock.

Just 1.2 overs remaining this evening.

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A brilliant effort by Leicestershire with the bat on day two to eat into Surrey's big first innings score of 520.

Rishi Patel the pick of the bunch with his first century in first-class top flight cricket and he ends the day unbeaten on 133.

His opening partner Jake Weatherald fell just four shy of a ton himself as they put on 156 for the first wicket.

Lewis Hill was dropped on eight by Ollie Pope but made the most of it to go through to 60*.

The Foxes trail by 170 runs going into day three with seven wickets in the hut. All to play for.

Lewis Hill nudges a single off Sean Abbott and Leicestershire move onto 350.

Three balls to go on day two.

Very much Derbys day considering Lancs have only managed to chip out two wickets to add to the one they took before the close on day one.

18 overs lost to the rain with a succession of rain delays which interrupted the flow more for the bowling side than the batters.

Harry Came and Matt Montgomery were solid adding 94 for the second wicket for all that the former was dropped on 16 and 54.

Came and Brooke Guest added 57 for the third and the latter has put on another 83 for the fourth with Martin Andersson.

At the close Derbys trail by 116 runs and while Lancs will regroup overnight, they will need to make some serious inroads with the new ball when it is due in four overs in the morning.

Into the final over of the day at The Oval.

Leicestershire have done very well to reduce the Surrey lead to 173 with seven wickets still remaining.

They've got just a couple more overs to see it through to the close.

George Hill just can't get his line right sending one from over the wicket to the left-handed Nick Gubbins that is cut for four.

He then changes to around the wicket to Gubbins but then goes back over for right hander Tom Prest only to plonk one behind his legs again.

He gets away with that one with the boundary rider cutting it off.

Three very loose deliveries from George Hill the first angled across the left handed Nick Gubbins is smacked to the boundary.

Two more in the same over follow the same line on the legs of Tom Prest and both are given the treatment, helped on their way to the square leg rope.