Surrey 262: Smith 100 & 44-3: Smith 11
Essex 180: Walter 64; Clark 3-33
Surrey (4 pts) lead Essex (3 pts) by 126 runs
On the second day of a fiercely contested match at the Kia Oval, Surrey managed to take a slight lead over Essex in this top-tier County Championship Division One clash.
Surrey, the leaders of Division One, resumed their first innings on 248-8 and secured a batting bonus point before being dismissed for 262. In response, second-placed Essex were bowled out for 180.
The pitch, with ample grass to assist fast bowlers, saw Surrey struggle in their second innings, finishing the day at 44-3 but extending their overall lead to 126 runs.
Paul Walter, who top-scored with 64 for Essex, and Matt Critchley (48) were the only batsmen to resist the Surrey bowlers for a notable period. For Surrey, Jamie Porter, Shane Snater, and Eathan Bosch took crucial wickets with the new ball before bad light halted play, cutting 27 overs from the day.
Essex’s Jordan Cox was absent due to an appendix surgery after feeling unwell on Sunday.
For Surrey, Dan Worrall and Jordan Clark were instrumental, taking 3-40 and 3-33, respectively. Clark was pivotal, removing former South Africa Test captain Dean Elgar for a duck and later ending Walter’s defiant innings at 64.
Walter’s knock included eight fours and a six off Clark, but he was the eighth man out after miscuing a hook to deep square leg.
Essex had a shaky start, with Nick Browne (12) edging Worrall to the third slip, and Elgar falling in the next over. Tom Westley (11) was bowled by a superb delivery from James Taylor, but Critchley and Walter steadied the innings, adding 52 runs around lunch.
Worrall returned to dismiss Critchley and later Michael Pepper cheaply. Simon Harmer showed some lower-order resistance but was trapped lbw by Taylor on 16. Lawes, playing his first match in two months, took the wicket of Snater (six) with a catch by Taylor at long leg.
Tea was called immediately after Clark wrapped up Essex’s innings. Surrey then lost both openers quickly, as Dom Sibley was bowled for 11 by a great delivery from Porter, and Rory Burns (eight) edged Snater to second slip.
Play was first stopped due to bad light at just after 17:00 BST with Surrey on 36-2. On resumption, Dan Lawrence (10) was lbw to Bosch. Only two overs were bowled before bad light stopped play again. Umpires Peter Hartley and Graham Lloyd waited over an hour for the light to improve, allowing a final four overs to be bowled.
At the close of play, Jamie Smith was not out on 11, with Ben Foakes unbeaten on four, having already been hit on his right hand by a bouncer from Porter.