Lancashire vs Middlesex – County Championship Division 1 – Lancashire steady ahead of final day
http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Lancashire-c806, remain winless in the current County Championship Division 1 season, ending an entertaining third day on 29 for 0 in their pursuit of 429 at Aigburth, Liverpool, on May 26, 2012.
With Lancs ending their first innings on a healthy 392, Middlesex began the penultimate morning from their overnight score of 155 for 5 - still 88 runs adrift of the follow-on. http://www.senore.com/Cricket/John-Simpson-c1722 had already added 60 for the sixth wicket, and it seemed likely that the visitors would close the deficit under good batting conditions.
However, the morning was dominated by hosts with skipper Greg Chapple making the first inroad – removing Dexter for 43. Young spinner http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Corey-Collymore-c1283, as Middlesex ended on 230.
Despite having the option of enforcing the follow-on, Lancashire batted on under friendly conditions, with http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Stephen-Moore-c2572 (19), Horton added a quick 130-run stand with Karl Brown (76) – helping his side built a substantial lead.
With the regular options failing to provide wickets, Middlesex rallied on the part-time spin of http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Dawid-Malan-c1344, who finally helped his side to stem the flow of runs. Malan took the next four wickets to fall, including Horton, and ended with the unlikeliest of 5-wicket hauls.
The home side ended finally declared on 266 for 8 – setting their opponents a daunting 429, while leaving them to weather the final hour of play. To Middlesex’s credit, openers http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Chris-Rogers-c1249 stood well against the new ball and ensured that his side ended the day with all 10 wickets intact. However, with 96 overs left in the game, Lancashire remain ahead.
"We have good memories here and we know it is a result wicket," said Paul Horton, recalling his side’s impressive run at Aigburth last season. "We played Yorkshire here on this wicket so we know it can go to the wire, but we have dominated the three days and hopefully we can dominate the fourth.
"We've played well in patches this season without winning anything. We've probably not taken advantage of the positions we've been in, so tomorrow is a big day and we have to keep plugging away," added Horton.
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