Middlesex build big lead at Gloucestershire

Rothesay County Championship, Division Two, Seat Unique Stadium, Bristol (day three)

Middlesex 326 & 298-6: Robson 92

Gloucestershire 296: Ahmed 90*; Hollman 3-36

Middlesex (5 pts) lead Gloucestershire (4 pts) by 328 runs

Match scorecard

Sam Robson led the way with 92 as Middlesex built a strong position on the third day of the County Championship Division Two match with Gloucestershire.

The opener hit 10 fours in facing 198 balls to help his side progress their overnight second innings score of 17 without loss to 298-6, a lead of 328, Ben Geddes making 57 on a pitch starting to assist the spinners.

Harry Duke's unbeaten 52 late in the day cemented the Middlesex advantage against a Gloucestershire attack that kept a tight rein on the scoring rate, seamer JT Langridge and leg-break bowler Ed Middleton claiming two wickets each.

Despite overnight rain, play started on time in bright sunshine. Robson soon signalled his intention to play positively with a flowing extra cover drive for four in the opening over, sent down by Langridge.

Unbeaten on ten at the start of play, Luke Hollman helped take the score to 50 before losing concentration against left-arm seamer Langridge. He survived a chance to first slip on 24, taking two runs, only to edge the next delivery straight to Ollie Price at second slip.

It was 57-2 when Middlesex skipper Max Holden nicked a delivery from Daz Ahmed, the ball striking wicketkeeper James Bracey, standing up to the stumps, before looping to Price, who held a comfortable catch.

By lunch, Robson and Geddes had advanced the total to 93-2, a lead of 123. Robson was unbeaten on 44, while Geddes had hit left-arm spinner Sai Kishore for a straight six on his way to 16 not out.

The afternoon session saw Robson got to fifty with a single to cover off Ahmed, having faced 129 balls and hit six fours. He was fortunate when edging the same bowler just short of third slip with the total on 134, but produced some fine forcing shots off the back foot through the off side.

Geddes followed to the half-century milestone off 118 deliveries and the pair had added 113 when he miscued an attacking shot off Middleton to be caught at cover. At 170-3, the Middlesex lead was exactly 200.

There were signs of turn for Middleton and Kishore, who produced a beauty to remove Robson in sight of a century, the ball straightening from around the wicket to beat the outside edge of a forward defensive shot and strike off stump.

At tea Middlesex were 193-4, leading by 223. Middleton bowled tidily from the Ashley Down Road End either side of the interval, giving little away, and was soon celebrating a second wicket as Ryan Higgins, on 13, sliced a catch to Matt Taylor at backward point.

By the end of his spell, Middleton had figures of 2-43 from 16 overs. He was replaced by Langridge, who struck in his first over of the session, finding a gap between Caleb Falconer's bat and pad to bowl him for 31, watchfully compiled off 73 balls.

At 240-6, Middlesex led by 270 as Harry Duke was joined by former Gloucestershire player Zafar Gohar. Duke produced some handsome drives including a sweetly-timed straight boundary off Ollie Price as the pair extended the advantage beyond the 300 mark.

The floodlights were on as the day's play drew to a close at which point the seventh-wicket stand had passed the half-century mark and Duke had reached fifty off 85 balls to ensure Gloucestershire would face a stiff final day target.

ECB Reporters' Network supported by Rothesay.